The Faith of a Child
by FaithInHim4ever
Summary: Co-written with my friend, Megan. When the angels are asigned to the Smith family, Gloria discovers the faith of a child is the strongest of all. R/R
1. Chapter 1

DISCLAIMER: WE DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

A/N: Me and my good friend, Megan, wrote this story together. We had a lot of fun writing it! This

story deals with the subject of abuse. Use good judgment when reading it.

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 1

One crisp, fall day, Monica stood in the kitchen of the modest two story home the Father had provided for herself, her charge Gloria, Tess, and Andrew.

The Irish angel was sipping coffee and looking out the window watching the children ride their bikes around the street. Andrew was out on an assignment. Tess was, well Monica didn't know where Tess was currently and Gloria was sleeping.

The Irish angel sighed before taking another sip of her coffee, never taking her eyes off the children in the street.

'Children are such a gift', Monica thought to herself. That statement was going to be the main focus of their next assignment.

The Father had informed Monica earlier that morning during prayer that this assignment was going to be different.

All four angels were going to be involved, but especially Gloria. She was going to be involved in a special way.

God hadn't told the Irish angel how exactly, but Monica could feel deep inside of her that she was about to find out.

A few moments later she felt another presence in the kitchen with her. It was Tess.

"Hullo Tess." Monica greeted her long time friend and supervisor. "Hi baby." Tess greeted her as she went to the cupboard to get out a mug to make tea. She wasn't a big coffee drinker like Miss Wings.

"Have you heard anything about this assignment?" Monica asked curiously. Tess shook her head, "Nothing yet baby. I just know what you know. We'll know when the time is right."

Monica nodded her head. She was about to take a drink of her coffee when she heard a cry come from upstairs.

However, it didn't sound like their usual Gloria.

Monica quickly set down her coffee and ran up the stairs. Tess followed behind, slower of course.

The Irish angel hurried to the room Gloria was staying in.

When she opened it, her mouth fell open in shock at the sight she found.

. Looking up from the bed was a six year old Gloria with tears streaming down her face.

Tess came to stand behind Monica a few moments later.

"Well I guess we got our answer as to what was different about this assignment."

Monica nodded her head as she walked into the room and sat down on the bed beside Gloria.

"I'm small!" Gloria instantly exclaimed to Monica.

"You are indeed, little one." Monica replied giving her a smile. She reached her arms out for Gloria to crawl into.

Gloria immediately did so and cuddled into Monica.

Tess walked in and sat down on the chair on the opposite side of the room as she waited for Monica to explain the

assignment to Gloria.

"The Father has made you this size for a reason sweetheart." Monica began as Gloria looked up at her in full attention. "Our assignment is a family with a wee girl named Grace Elizabeth Smith. She's the same age as you are right now, six years old."

"Why does she need angels?" Gloria asked softly as she reached up and took a piece of Monica's hair and began to twirl it around her finger.

"Well, her Daddy doesn't treat her as well as she should be treated. He screams at her and hits her. He doesn't love her the way God wants parents to love their children." Monica explained.

"What will I be doin'?" Gloria asked as she continued to look up to Monica for answers.

"Well, God wants you to go to school with the wee girl and become her friend." Monica answered.

Gloria nodded her head before speaking up again.

"What will you and Andrew and Tess be doing?" She asked curiously.

"Tess will be working as a social worker that works with the family, Andrew will be working with Grace's father at his work, and I'll be working with the mother." Monica explained.

"So no one will be at school with me?" She asked softly.

"No, sweetheart, but you'll be fine. You're going to do so great. God knows what He is doing and we need to have faith and trust in Him. I know you're probably scared because you aren't your normal self, but your heart is the same." Monica reminded her young charge.

"I'm not so sure I like being so small, Monica." Gloria confessed to her supervisor softly.

Monica smiled and hugged Gloria just a little closer.

"I know and it'll take some getting used to. Don't be afraid to come to me, Tess, or Andrew if you need help or if you are unsure of something. We're going to help you through this."

Gloria nodded her head and hugged Monica tightly as she thought about all that had occurred in such a short amount of time.

"When am I going to school?" Gloria asked, gazing up at Monica.

"Well, you're going to start school on Monday." She replied.

Gloria nodded. She wasn't so sure about this, but she trusted the Father and she trusted Monica. So if Monica said it was going to be okay, it generally meant everything was going to be fine.

For the rest of the day, Gloria and Monica spent some time together. They read books and played some games. Tess even taught Gloria how to play one of her favorite songs on the piano.

Right before dinnertime, Monica announced that they were going out.

When Gloria asked where, the Irish angel told her it was a surprise.

Upon arriving at Wal-Mart, Monica helped Gloria out of her car seat and took her hand. She led her into the store and over to the school supplies aisle.

Gloria's eyes widened at all of the different themes they had for school supplies. She grinned from ear to ear as she spotted something she liked.

Monica saw her case worker or daughter's expression as she ran to the object hanging on one of the many racks.

"Do you like that one, little one?" She asked softly.

Gloria nodded. She tried to get the closest back pack to her down, but it was hard.

"Would you like some help?" Monica offered.

Gloria nodded as a frown crossed her face. She didn't understand why she couldn't get it down herself. She had been able to before.

Once the Ariel backpack was safely in her grasp, Gloria followed Monica to another part of the section.

The little girl picked out a Tinkerbell school kit. It had a pencil case, a pack of pencils, a few erasers and a pencil sharpener in it. She then picked out a few folders. Two of them had Ariel with different sea backgrounds on them, while the other two had Jasmine and Tinkerbell on them. She also picked out a Disney princess notebook. The notebook had Ariel and Jasmine, along with Belle and Cinderella on it. She also picked out a Tinkerbell one to be her journal.

Monica said this was okay since they were two for five dollars. The notebooks themselves were full of paper for Gloria to write and draw on.

Last but not least, she picked out a lunchbox. This was a little more difficult. The reason was, Gloria wanted a My Little Pony one, but they only had care bears.

She finally decided on a Tinkerbell one with a Disney Princess thermos. The front of the lunchbox had Tinkerbell on it and it was hot pink. Above Tinkerbell, it said in neon pink letters, "Have a Flitterific Lunch!"

Gloria thought that was the coolest thing in the world!

After picking out some crayons and a set of markers, the Irish angel and her charge were ready to leave the store.

Before they left, Monica took Gloria to the toy section. She told her she could pick out one special thing. This was due to two things. One being Gloria's behavior while they had been shopping for her school stuff. And the other reason was she didn't have many toys to play with while she was in this form.

It was true that she could borrow Kassie's while her daughter was away for the next few weeks, but Monica wanted her daughter to have a few things of her own.

Gloria ended up picking out a plush Ariel doll and a medium sized white tiger cub she named Mae.

After paying for their purchases, they returned home.

Gloria showed Tess everything Monica had bought for her the minute she found her superior. She begged Tess to help her get everything ready and the elder angel agreed. She promised Gloria she would help her after dinner.

After the dinner dishes were cleared, Tess kept her word. She helped Gloria get everything set up and made sure it was easy for Gloria to find everything without too much trouble.

Once that was done, the four angels sat down to have dessert.

After dessert was over, Tess read Gloria a bedtime story and sung to her before she and Monica tucked her in for the night. They made sure she had the teddy bear Monica had given her before leaving the room.

Monica stayed for a little bit after Gloria was asleep. She wanted to make sure her little one was going to be okay. She knew she was probably afraid to be in this new Human form. But the Irish angel also knew that all they had to do was have faith and let the Father handle the rest. Little did Monica know what was in store for them….


	2. Chapter 2

DISCLAIMER: WE DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

A/N: Here is the second chapter! I hope everyone likes it! This story deals with the subject of abuse. Use good judgment when reading it.

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 2

When Monday rolled around, Gloria woke up to the sun streaming into her bedroom window. It took her a minute to remember what had happened two days ago.

As the memories came flooding back to her, she started feeling scared.

Just then, Monica came into the room. She gave Gloria a warm smile. When her charge didn't return it, the Irish angel became worried. She knew her 'little one was worried about starting school. She also knew the youngest angel was nervous about being in this new Human form.

"Morning, little one." Monica greeted. She sat on the bed and held her arms out to Gloria.

The little angel wasted no time in diving into her supervisor's embrace. She felt safest with Monica and she wanted to stay with her.

"Aw, I love you too, sweetheart."

"Monica, I'm scared!" Gloria confessed as the flood gates opened. "I don't wanna go to school! I don't wanna be all alone! Please don't make me go!"

Monica's heart broke, but she knew what she had to do.

"I know you're afraid, darlin', but you have to go. You need to help Grace. She needs you. Don't you wanna help with the assignment?"

Gloria made a noise that told Monica she wasn't looking forward to it.

Sighing, the Irish angel ran a hand through her daughter's reddish brown locks. She loved this little angel with all her heart. She wanted to protect her from everything, but she knew she couldn't.

Monica loved Gloria the same way Tess loved them all. She thought of Gloria as her own, just like Tess viewed the Irish angel as her own. She knew Gloria viewed her as her mother because she had been there the day the youngest angel was born. Monica had been the first angel Gloria had connected with. This was the reason their bond was so strong.

After a few minutes of cuddling, the Irish angel made a suggestion.

"Why don't we pray before you leave." She suggested. "You know you're never alone, right?"

Gloria nodded, but she still wasn't sure about all of this.

"Would you like to pray with me now, little one?" She offered.

Gloria nodded.

"All right." With that, Monica took Gloria's smaller hand in hers and began the prayer. "Father, I ask that you protect Gloria throughout this assignment. Help her to remember you love her and help her to show her assignment your love. I ask this in your precious name, Amen."

After a minute or so, Monica pulled Gloria close and planted a kiss on her cheek.

"Do you feel better now, little one?" She asked.

Gloria nodded slowly. She did feel a little better after they were finished praying. She was still afraid, but she didn't feel as anxious as she had before.

"A little bit." She replied.

"I'm glad. All right. Let's get you ready." With that, Monica led Gloria to the bathroom.

When they arrived, Gloria went to turn the shower on, but Monica stopped her.

"Gloria, wait, sweetheart. You can't do that now."

"Why not?" The little angel asked. She was truly confused. She had always taken a shower by herself before.

"Because I need to help you." The Irish angel patiently explained. "I don't want you burning yourself. Besides, I hear Tess bought some bubble bath." She winked, getting a smile out of Gloria.

Once Gloria was ready, Monica placed her in the tub. She washed her from top to bottom and made sure to wash her hair. She let Gloria play for a few minutes as well.

After the bath was over, then came the task of getting her 'little one ready.

Arriving back in the bedroom, Gloria sat in Monica's lap while her supervisor and best friend brushed her hair. She put it in two pigtails and tied them off with pink sun ponytail holders with blue dolphins in the middle of them.

After that was done, it was time to get her dressed. This was a task in itself. The reason was, Gloria was determined to pick the outfit out on her own, but Monica knew she needed help. The other thing was the time. They didn't have a lot of it and Gloria still had to eat breakfast.

"Can I help pick it out, please?" Gloria asked. She knew Monica and Tess liked it when she used her manners.

"Sure. What color would you like to wear?" Monica asked.

Gloria thought for a moment. She put her thumb underneath her chin, making the Irish angel giggle. That was something she had picked up from her.

After a minute or so, the little girl answered her supervisor's question.

"Blue!"

"I think that's a lovely idea. But since your scrunchies have blue and pink, let's find somethin' that has pink in it too."

"Good idea." Gloria echoed. She loved spending time with Monica.

It took a while, but Monica was able to get Gloria dressed and the two went downstairs.

Gloria was wearing a blue jumper with a pink shirt underneath of it. Her sandals were also blue and purple with a few shades of pink going through them.

"Who wants strawberry pancakes?" Tess asked, smiling at her two 'angel babies.

Gloria frowned at the elder angel's suggestion. She had had her heart set on Rice Krispies.

Tess saw her frown and raised her eyebrows at Monica.

Monica shrugged.

"Gloria's just scared." She told her former supervisor. "This is all new for her."

Tess nodded. She gave Gloria a loving smile and held her arms out. She thought Gloria could use a hug.

Gloria didn't run to her superior though. Instead, she backed up into Monica. She turned around and buried her face in her waist.

Monica patted Gloria's head before wrapping a loving arm around her. She thought Gloria was going to start crying, but the tears never came.

"Aw, is my little one still tired?" Monica asked. She picked Gloria up and hugged her close.

Gloria shook her head before burying her face in Monica's shoulder. She clung on, but tried hard not to cry.

Tess tried yet again to get Gloria's attention.

"Little angel, if you don't want pancakes, then what would you like to eat?"

The sound of Tess's special name for her made Gloria turn to gaze in her superior's direction.

Even though she wasn't an angel anymore, she knew 'little angel was just for her from Tess.

"Can I have cereal, please?" She asked.

"I think we can manage that." She smiled at her angel baby and was relieved to see a small smile spread across Gloria's face as well.

Setting Gloria down, Monica watched as the little girl made her way to the pantry where the cereal was kept. She reached up, all intentions of getting the box down.

But as she continued to reach for it, she realized to her growing frustration that she couldn't reach it.

Sensing her charge's mounting frustration, Monica came to her rescue.

"Would you like me to get it down for you?" She offered.

Gloria nodded as she started to pout. She was starting to find out that being this small had its disadvantages.

Trying to hide her laughter, Monica retrieved the item from the cabinet and set to work making Gloria's breakfast.

After everyone was seated, Tess took Gloria's hand on her left and Monica's on her right. She then said the prayer.

After breakfast was over, Monica did the dishes while Tess got herself ready. She was going to be the one taking Gloria to school.

While the Irish angel worked, Gloria hung around her. She knew it would be time to leave soon and she wasn't looking forward to being away from Monica at all.

"Why can't you take me?" Gloria asked as Monica finished the last dish.

"Because I have to get started on my part of the assignment while you're in school." Monica explained. "But I'll see you after school. I promise."

Gloria nodded. She could feel the butterflies returning.

Ten minutes later, Tess came downstairs. She had her car keys in hand and a bag slung over her shoulder.

"All right, little angel. It's time to go. Say good bye to Monica and we can get going."

It was like Tess had said Gloria was going to the doctor.

The child tensed and her lower lip started to tremble. Before she knew it, she had flung herself at the Irish angel, tears streaming down her face.

"Oh Gloria!" Monica said sympathetically. "Shh, it's okay. Come here." With that, she picked the sobbing child up and hugged her close. "What's wrong, sweetheart?"

"I don't wanna go!" Gloria cried. "I don't wanna go! Please don't make me! I wanna stay with you!"

Monica looked to Tess for help.

The elder angel shook her head. She had a feeling this was going to happen. The morning hadn't exactly gone well for the youngest member of their family.

Gloria was sobbing hard now, her breathing coming in gasps. This wasn't good and Monica knew it.

"Gloria? Little one, it's okay. It's okay. You'll be fine. You'll see me when you get home. Shh…" Monica started rubbing Gloria's back and stroking her hair. She prayed and hoped it would calm her down.

"That's it," the Irish angel soothed. "That's my girl. You're all right. It's okay." With that, Monica carried Gloria to the bathroom.

Once there, she sat down on the edge of the tub with Gloria in her lap. The little girl was almost calm, which the Irish angel was grateful.

Once she was calm enough, Monica helped her wash her face and tried to help her feel better.

"You promise you'll be here when I come home?" Gloria asked in between hiccups and sniffs.

"I promise. I love you, little one. I love you so much." She told her sincerely.

"I love you too." Gloria replied.

"Will you try and be brave for me?" Monica asked.

Gloria took a deep breath before slowly nodding her head.

"I'll try." She said softly.

"Aw, good girl. All right. Let's go see Tess." With that, Monica carried Gloria downstairs. She set her down once they got there and embraced her one more time.

After they pulled away, Monica took Gloria's hand and led her outside to Tess's car.

Tess gave Gloria a loving smile when she saw her and Monica approaching.

"Are you feeling better, little angel?" Tess asked in concern.

Gloria nodded.

Reluctantly, she let Monica hug her once more before helping her into her car seat.

Monica threw Tess a worried glance as her gaze shifted from Gloria to her former supervisor.

"Go easy on her." Monica said softly.

"Don't worry, Ms. Wings. Our little Gloria's gonna be fine. I'll take care of her." With that, Tess gave Monica a hug before getting into the driver's seat and closing the door behind her.

As they drove through the streets of Portland Oregon, Gloria tried her best not to start crying again. She had promised Monica she would be brave and she wanted to keep that promise.

But as Tess rounded the corner to the school, Gloria felt her eyes well up again. She really missed her best friend and she wasn't used to being away from her for long periods of time.

Tess caught Gloria's expression out of the corner of her eye and her heart about broke right there. She felt bad for her 'little angel, but this assignment had to be done.

Thinking fast, Tess parked the car in the last spot closest to the school and got out. She went around to Gloria's side and slid in beside her.

Putting a hand on Gloria's shoulder, Tess gave her a reassuring smile before unbuckling her from the seat.

As Tess did this, Gloria's frightened brown eyes flickered from the building in front of them to Tess and back again.

Sensing Gloria's fear, Tess pulled her out of the seat and into her lap.

The little girl struggled at first, but then relaxed as she felt Tess wrap her arms around her protectively.

"I know you're scared, honey." Tess began. "But I also know you and I know you can do this. But more importantly, God knows you can do this."

Gloria listened to Tess's words, but she still felt like she was going to cry any minute. The whole morning had just been too much for her.

First she had woken up in a new Human form and then she found she couldn't do all the things she was used to doing for herself. To top it off, she was soon going to be alone in a strange place. And to make matters worse, Monica wouldn't be there with her.

A few minutes later, Tess started singing. She knew it would calm Gloria down.

Once Tess was done singing "When You Can't Move the Mountain" Gloria was visibly calmer.

"At least that's one thing that hasn't changed." Tess commented, smiling down at her little angel.

"I like that song." Gloria told her.

"I know you do." Tess assured her. "That's why I sing it to you."

The little girl smiled.

As Tess gazed down at her watch, she knew it was time for school to begin for Gloria.

"Little angel," Tess began. She knew she needed to broach the topic carefully. "It's time to go inside now."

Gloria nodded.

"It's gonna be okay." Tess reassured her. "I know it will."

Gloria took a deep breath as she let Tess lead her into the building. It was now or never and the little girl knew never wasn't an option.


	3. Chapter 3

DISCLAIMER: WE DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

A/N: This story is just on a roll! Here is the next chapter! I hope everyone enjoys it!

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 3

Once inside the classroom, Tess knelt down to Gloria's level.

The classroom itself was brightly lit. It had pictures of animals and shapes on the bulletin board. There was a calendar on one side of the room and a growth chart on the other. A map of the world hung just above the blackboard.

There were also different centers set up for different things. There was a pretend center and a science center, as well as an art center and a reading corner.

On the far side of the room sat a bunny in a cage.

Tess knew once Gloria got used to things, the bunny would be her favorite thing to play with.

She tried to get Gloria interested in everything around her, but the little girl was too nervous to pay attention right then.

Tess didn't take it personally though. She turned her attention back to her 'little angel just then.

"You'll be fine, sweetheart. I love you. Everything will be okay."

Gloria tried to believe her superior's words, but it was hard.

Tess gave Gloria a hug and the little girl hugged back.

As they pulled away, Tess could see tears welling up in the little girl's eyes.

But before they could fall, another little girl ran up to them. She gave Gloria a friendly smile. She had sparkling brown eyes that shone with excitement and kindness.

"Hi! I'm Min! Do you wanna play house?"

Tess smiled down at the other little girl.

The child looked about five or six. She had chestnut brown hair fashioned in two low pigtails. As for her outfit, she was wearing a purple jumpsuit with a pink shirt underneath.

Gloria gazed up at Tess for approval.

"Go on." Tess encouraged. "It's okay. See? You made a new friend already."

Gloria nodded. She gave Min a small smile.

Tes made sure that Gloria was going to be okay before leaving the classroom. She watched her 'little angel for a few minutes before heading back home. She had good news to tell Monica. She knew her 'angel girl would be relieved to know Gloria had made a new friend. Little did Tess know what trouble was in store for her.

"What's your name?" Min asked as she lead the way to the housekeeping corner.

"Gloria." Gloria replied.

"That's a pretty name!" Min commented.

"Thanks." Gloria replied. "I like your name too." With that, the girls began to play. They decided to play house Disney Princess style.

Gloria used her Ariel doll while Min used her Cinderella one. Gloria was beginning to have fun. She had even forgotten that Monica wasn't there as she and Min continued to play.

All of a sudden, the classroom door burst open. This caused Gloria to jump. She didn't like loud noises, especially if they were sudden ones.

Min, however, didn't seem to be too frightened by it. She seemed to be used to it.

Seeing Gloria's face, Min hastened to make her feel better.

"It's okay." She said. "Grace's Daddy isn't going to hurt us."

Gloria nodded. At the sound of Grace's name, her eyes lit up in recognition. Grace was her assignment.

Just then, a man with brown hair and grey eyes walked into the room. A little girl followed slightly behind him. She had light brown hair and brown eyes. She looked afraid and Gloria wanted to help her instantly.

She tried to catch Grace's eye, but the other little girl looked away.

Gloria noticed there was something different about Grace's clothes right away. She noticed they weren't as nice as hers or Min's. They were torn in places and they looked old. Her hair looked like it had just been put in a ponytail hastily. It didn't look anything like what Monica had done to Gloria's hair.

Gloria knew Grace needed a friend almost immediately. She didn't know why she felt that way, it was just what her heart was telling her.

The girls waited until grace's father left before approaching her.

Min made the introductions since she had known Grace longer and Gloria was still new.

"Hi Grace! Wanna play with us?"

Grace shook her head. She did want to play with Min, but she was still afraid from what had happened that morning at home.

Min tried one more time. She wasn't one to give up on her friends too easily.

"Grace, this is Gloria. She's new in school. She's really nice. We were playing Disney princess tea party. Come and play with us! You can be Belle." She offered. She knew how much Grace liked her.

Grace gave Gloria a tiny smile before considering Min's offer.

After a minute, Grace shook her head. She wandered over to the other side of the room and sat down near the story corner.

Gloria frowned at this. She didn't like seeing people in pain. She wanted to help Grace, but she also didn't want to push too hard.

As the little girl was about to make her way over to her, Miss Melody clapped her hands together and told the children it was circle time.

She asked the children gently to put their toys in their cubbies and put anything that belonged in the classroom away in the right place.

Min loved to clean, so she obeyed without a second thought. Gloria also liked helping Monica and Tess do things around the house, so it was no trouble for her either.

As she went to sit down, Min sat on her left.

Once all the children were seated around the circle, Gloria beckoned Grace over to where she and Min were sitting. She didn't want her sitting alone.

Grace hesitated, but Gloria did seem nice. Besides, she also knew Min too.

Taking a deep breath, Grace sat down on Gloria's right.

Gloria gave her a friendly smile before turning her attention to Miss Melody.

"Now, I know Gloria's new, so does someone want to tell her what we've been talking about for the last week?" She asked kindly.

Min's hand shot up almost immediately.

"Min? Why don't you fill Gloria in." Miss Melody suggested.

"Okay!" Min replied. She smiled at Gloria before continuing. "We've been talking about kinds of jobs grown ups have."

"That's right." Miss Melody praised her. "Good job. Now, I want everyone to either name a type of job a grown up could do or the type of job your parents or guardians have."

A little girl named Sara spoke just then.

"Miss Melody? What's a guardan?"

Miss melody smiled gently over at the little girl.

Sara had blond hair and blue eyes.

"Well, sweetheart, a guardian is someone who takes care of you like a Mommy or Daddy would. Can anyone name a type of guardian?"

Out of excitement, Gloria answered before raising her hand.

"Tess!" She exclaimed, remembering her superior and all she did for her.

Instead of scolding Gloria, Miss Melody encouraged her to keep talking. She liked it when new children joined in on their own.

"Is Tess the lady who dropped you off, Gloria?" The teacher asked.

Gloria nodded eagerly.

"Uh-huh. She's really nice."

"I'm glad." Miss Melody told her. "But next time, remember to raise your hand and use your indoor voice. Okay?"

Gloria nodded.

"Yes, Miss Melody."

Miss Melody smiled to show Gloria she wasn't in trouble.

"Now, can anyone name a type of job a grown up has or one the person takes care of you does?" Miss Melody asked, addressing the class as a whole once again.

Min raised her hand once again.

"My Mommy's a nurse." She said. "She takes care of people when they're sick and helps them feel better. She's really nice."

Miss Melody nodded.

"Okay. A nurse is one job. Now does she work at a hospital?"

Min shook her head.

"She works at the hospital sometimes. But the rest of the time, she works at something called a clinic."

"That's a smaller version of a regular hospital." Miss Melody explained patiently.

Min nodded.

"Okay."

As other kids spoke, Gloria waited for her turn. She knew exactly what she was going to say.

"Gloria?" Miss Melody called. "Would you like to tell us what Tess or anyone else you live with does for a job?"

Gloria nodded. She smiled from ear to ear as she answered the question.

"Yes. My Mommy's an angel!" She announced proudly.

The silence that fell after Gloria's announcement made her feel a little uncomfortable. Had she said the wrong thing? Miss Melody had asked them to tell her about jobs their parents did after all. All she had done was obey her teacher.

Min was the first one to speak.

"Your Mommy's a real angel?" She asked. Her tone was full of confusion and surprise.

Gloria nodded.

Miss Melody had an equally confused expression on her face. But instead of questioning Gloria's statement, she tried to understand why she had said it.

But before she could ask her question, a boy named Ryan spoke up.

"Angels aren't real!" He shouted. "You're lying!"

"No I'm not!" Gloria shouted back. She was on her feet at this point. Her hands were planted on her hips in a fine imitation of Tess. "I don't lie! Angels are so real! My Mommy's one and so is…" Her voice trailed off because she had a feeling finishing her sentence wasn't a good idea.

"Are not!" Ryan shot at her. "If angels were real, then why doesn't one help her?" With that, he thrust his hand towards Grace.

Grace blushed crimson and tried her best to hide the pain she felt.

Miss Melody meanwhile was trying to get the class back under control.

"Boys and girls, please. Let's sit back down." She then addressed Ryan first. "Ryan, you know it's not nice to point at people. You need to say you're sorry to Grace."

Ryan frowned, but did as Miss Melody instructed.

Once Ryan was put in his place, Miss Melody turned her attention to her newest student.

"Gloria, do you mean your Mommy helps people?"

"Yes. She helps people God tells her to."

Miss Melody nodded. She decided to leave well enough alone for the time being. She would speak to whoever picked Gloria up at the end of the day. For now it was time to continue with the lesson.

After the lesson was over, Miss Melody got snack out and the children ate and talked amongst themselves.

Once again, Gloria and Min tried to get Grace to sit with them. It took some coaxing, but Grace finally agreed. She liked Gloria and she hoped they could become friends.

In the middle of eating a snack of crackers and cheese with fruit juice, Min leaned over to Gloria and whispered in her ear.

"I believe you about your Mommy." She said earnestly.

"You do?" Gloria whispered back, surprised.

Min nodded.

"Yup. I saw a real angel once. He took my grandma to Heaven. He had green eyes and he was really nice. Does your Mommy take people to Heaven too?"

Gloria shook her head.

"No. She helps them when they're sad or upset and makes them feel better."

"Is she nice?" Min wanted to know.

"Oh she's really nice." Gloria affirmed. "She's the best!"

Min smiled.

Grace, meanwhile sat and listened to the two girls talk. She wanted so badly to believe what Gloria was saying, but a part of her didn't know what to believe. Her parents weren't as nice as Gloria's or Min's and the little girl didn't trust most people. Little did Grace know what God had in store for her.

After snack time, Miss Melody told the children it was time to read. She told them they could sit anywhere just as long as they were quiet.

Gloria picked a seat next to the class's pet, Snowball the rabbit. She liked animals and the bunny seemed cute. Miss Melody had let her hold Snowball during playtime and the bunny was quieter in Gloria's hands than she usually was with new children.

The teacher couldn't understand why Snowball had been so relaxed. A part of her thought it was just because Gloria was good with animals and a little quieter than most kids. Little did Miss Melody know that was only part of the reason.

Grace wandered over to where Min and Gloria were sitting and sat herself next to Gloria. She was quiet about it, but she sat nonetheless.

Gloria gave her a smile before going back to reading "The Cat in the Hat." She loved reading and wanted to read another book, but she knew she had to finish this one first.

She really wanted to read one of her BSLS books, but she had forgotten to bring one of them with her. She would have to remember for tomorrow. She was also going to bring some carrots in for Snowball.

Before Gloria knew it, the end of the day had come. Kids were getting their backpacks and things out of their cubbies and waiting for their parents or guardians to pick them up.

"Do you wanna wait with me?" Min offered. "My Daddy will be here soon. He's really nice. Maybe I can meet Monica."

Gloria agreed almost immediately. She gathered her things and put them into the new Little Mermaid back pack Monica had bought her the day before.

After she had her stuff together, she followed Min to a table near the door.

Seeing Grace waiting alone, Gloria waved her over as well.

"Grace, come wait with us! You can meet my Mommy."

Grace looked a little unsure, but one smile from Gloria helped her make her decision.

When Monica arrived, Gloria jumped from her seat and ran to her supervisor's waiting arms.

Monica grinned as she caught her 'little one and swung her around before setting her on her hip and hugging her close. She had really missed her all day.

"Monica! Monica! You're here! You're here!" Gloria cried happily. "I missed you!"

"Aw, I missed you too, little one. How was your day? Tess told me you made a new friend."

"Two!" Gloria corrected her.

"Two? Wow!" Monica said, pretending to sound impressed.

Gloria giggled as the Irish angel set her down.

"Want to meet them?" Gloria asked eagerly.

"I'd love to." Monica replied.

Gloria grinned and pulled her over to where Min and Grace were standing.

"Min, this is my Mommy, Monica." Gloria introduced. "Monica, this is Min and this is Grace. They're my two new friends!"

Monica grinned at both girls. She loved children so much.

Kneeling down to the children's level, the Irish angel gave them a smile.

"Hello there. It's nice to meet you both."

Min was about to ask Monica if she was an angel, when Miss Melody came over to them. She smiled at Monica and held out her hand.

"Hi. You must be Monica."

"Yes. It's nice to meet you. Miss Melody, right?"

Miss Melody nodded.

"Yes. Can we talk for a minute?"

Monica nodded. She threw Gloria a look that clearly asked, "What did you do?" before following Miss Melody to another part of the room.

Gloria shrugged as she turned to Min and Grace.

"Are you going to get in trouble?" Grace asked timidly.

"I don't know." She replied. "I hope not. I don't think I did anything wrong."

Min put a reassuring arm around Gloria's shoulders while Grace looked on uncertainly.

Across the room from where the three girls stood, Monica and Miss melody were deep in conversation.

"I want to start off by saying that your daughter is a joy to have in class. She's a sweetheart and very friendly to the other kids. She seems to have made a friend for life in Min and Grace. I think she'll be a good influence on her." She indicated Grace as she said this.

"However…" Monica prompted, knowing there was one coming.

Miss Melody hesitated. She wasn't sure how to bring this up, but she knew she had to address the issue with Monica sooner or later. And the teacher of the last few years knew that sooner was better than later.

"Well, it's just that…we were talking about different jobs that grown ups do and Gloria said…she told us that you were an angel."

Monica's heart skipped a beat as Miss Melody finished her statement. She tried her best not to show her nervousness, but she could feel her heart beating faster in her chest. She silently willed herself to calm down. She had been in worse scrapes than this. Surely there was a way out of it.

Silently, the Irish angel prayed for God to help her find it.

"Of course she probably got it confused with something you do or something that was said." Miss Melody went on. "I'm just a little concerned. Would you mind talking to her tonight?"

"Not at all." Monica replied, gaining her voice back. "Thank you for telling me."

Miss Melody nodded.

Monica attempted to change the subject.

"So other than the "angel" thing, Gloria had a good day?"

Miss Melody nodded.

"Yes. She's a wonderful addition to our class."

Monica smiled.

"Thank you. She sure is that. We'll see you tomorrow then. Have a good night." With that, Monica made her way over to where Gloria and the girls were playing.

When Gloria saw her supervisor, she gave her a questioning look, but Monica just smiled at her.

Gloria sighed with relief.

Despite this, she had to know.

"Am I in trouble?" She asked once Monica had reached them.

Monica sighed.

"Not too much." She assured her. "We just have to talk when we get home, that's all. Come on, little one. Tess is waiting for us at home." With that, Monica picked Gloria up and started to tickle her, making the six year old squeal with giggles.

"Monica, stop! Stop, please!" Gloria begged in between laughter.

Monica ceased her tickling after a minute or so and set Gloria down. She ruffled her hair before taking her hand and leading her to the door.

Grace watched this interaction with confusion. She didn't know what to make of it. Her parents didn't treat her like that. Whenever she got in trouble or did something wrong, she would get hurt. Why did Monica treat Gloria differently?

Before Monica and Gloria left, they both said good bye to Min and Grace.

Monica agreed that they both could come over to play sometime soon. She was glad Gloria had made friends her first day. She had been worried about her, but the Irish angel knew the Father would take care of her. They were all in the Father's care and there was no safer place to be.


	4. Chapter 4

DISCLAIMER: WE DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 4

"Tess! Tess!" Gloria cried the second Monica opened the door and led her into the house.

"Indoor voice, little angel." Tess reminded her.

Gloria frowned. That was becoming a popular phrase today.

Tess appeared in the kitchen doorway just then. She grinned at Gloria to show her she wasn't upset with her. She held her arms out and Gloria ran for them.

"Aw, I missed you too, little angel. Did you have a good day?"

"Yup! I made two new friends!" Gloria told her superior. "Min is so nice and Grace is shy, but she's nice too. We tried to get her to play with us all day and she finally did."

"That's great!" Tess praised. "I'm really proud of you, sweetheart. Why don't you put your stuff away upstairs and then we can get going."

Gloria gave Tess a curious look.

"Where are we going?" She asked.

"It's a surprise." Tess told her. "All I can tell you is I'm taking you and Monica and Andrew out to eat."

"Yes! Yes!" Gloria cheered. She then remembered what Tess had asked of her when she had first come home. She repeated her cheer in a quieter tone. This got an approving smile from Tess and a giggle from her supervisor.

Once Gloria was upstairs, Tess turned her attention to her angel girl. She could tell something was wrong.

"All right, angel girl. Let's have it." Tess said.

"Have what?" Monica asked.

Tess narrowed her eyes at her former case worker.

"Don't give me that, Ms. Wings. I know something happened. Now what is it? I can't help you or Gloria if I don't know what's going on."

Monica sighed.

"Apparently during circle time, Gloria told Miss Melody and the whole class that her 'Mommy was an angel."

Tess smirked, making Monica glare at her before giving her a confused look.

"What are you smirking at?" The Irish angel asked. "Aren't you worried?"

Tess shook her head.

"Angel girl, you don't get it, do you? Gloria is a six year old as of now until this assignment is over. Six year olds say things they aren't supposed to. They often take things literally as well." She paused as a thought came to her mind. "Come to think of it, Gloria did that a lot when she was her normal self. But it's more prominent in her now. Also, her child like tendencies are more noticeable now that she's little. She didn't mean any harm."

Monica nodded.

"I guess you're right. But what should we do?"

"We?" Tess repeated. "There is no "we" in this equation. It's you who needs to do something. I suggest talking to her. Explain to her why she can't tell anyone our true identity. But most importantly, let Gloria know you still love her."

"Okay. But why can't you help me?" She asked.

"You can do this, honey. You're the one Gloria called 'Mommy. That means she trusts you. She'll more likely listen to you than to me. Besides, you're the one who is in charge of her. I know you can do this." She smiled before giving Monica a playful nudge towards the stairs. "Now go do your Mommy duty."

Monica couldn't help it. She let a little giggle escape her own lips. Tess was right and she knew it. She could do this. All she had to do was have faith and let God lead the way. As long as she did that, everything would fall into place.

Getting upstairs, Monica made her way to Gloria's bedroom. She could hear Gloria talking to someone as she approached. She soon realized who it was when she opened the door.

The Irish angel smiled at the sight she found.

Her ddaughter was sitting on her bed. Her real calico cat, Snickers, was on her lap. The little girl was telling her best feline friend about her first day at school.

"You'll meet Min and Grace soon." She told her friend. "They're really nice. I know they'll love you."

Monica made her presence known at that moment.

"May I come in, little one?"

Gloria looked up at the sound of her supervisor's voice. She hesitated slightly, but then she remembered Monica had told her she wasn't in too much trouble.

"Okay." Gloria consented.

Stepping into the room, Monica sat down on the edge of Gloria's bed. She patted her lap and motioned for Gloria to come sit with her.

"Come here, little one. Come and see me."

Gloria wasted no time in climbing into her supervisor's lap. She snuggled in for a cuddle as she waited for Monica to continue speaking.

"Gloria, we need to talk, sweetheart." The Irish angel began. She made sure her tone was firm, but not too harsh.

"I know." Gloria said resignedly. "I'm in trouble, aren't I?"

"A wee bit." Monica confirmed. At the sight of Gloria's trembling lower lip, she hastened to assure her. "It's not too bad, darlin'. It's just you shouldn't have told your teacher and class that I'm an angel. They can't know yet."

Gloria nodded. She gasped as realization hit. She gazed up into her supervisor's kind brown eyes-identical to her own- and asked, "You're not mad at me for telling them you were my 'Mommy?"

Monica shook her head and hugged Gloria close.

"Of course not. I know you view me as one because I've been there for you since you were born. I know that and it's okay. There's nothing wrong with you calling me 'Mommy for the time being. I love you more than anythin', little one. I think of you as my own, so it's okay that you tell people I'm your Mommy. That's not why I'm talking to you."

Gloria nodded.

"But Miss Melody asked us what our parents did for a job. I couldn't lie to her and I had to answer. You and Tess taught me to be polite to grown ups."

Monica nodded. She grinned at this. She was happy her 'little one had remembered her manners.

It hit the Irish angel just then how confused Gloria must be right now. She had been in between a rock and a hard place this afternoon and she had done what she thought was right. Why should she get in trouble for that?

"You just need to be careful what you say in future, okay?" Monica explained. "Can you promise me you'll try and do that from now on?"

Gloria nodded.

"Yes. I'll try."

"Aw, that's my girl. All right, let's get back downstairs. Tess is going to take us out to eat."

Gloria grinned. She liked the sound of that.

As Monica re did Gloria's hair and helped her pick out a skirt for the evening out, a question came to her mind.

"Did you say Tess was an angel too?"

Gloria shook her head.

"No. I told them Tess was my guardian."

Monica sighed with relief.

"Good."

After Gloria was ready, Monica made sure Snickers had food and water before taking Gloria's hand and leading her downstairs.

When Tess saw her 'little angel, she grinned. Gloria looked adorable!

"Why, don't you look precious." Tess commented. She gave Gloria a hug before leading the way to the car.

"Thanks." Gloria said.

"So is everything okay now?" Tess asked. She glanced from Monica to Gloria as she said this.

"I think so." Monica said, grinning over at Gloria as she placed her in her booster seat.

"That's good." Tess replied. She made sure Gloria had a book to read before getting into the driver's seat and starting the car.

Once Gloria was buckled in and Monica took her place next to her while Andrew sat in the front passenger's side, the angelic family was off. Little did they know their evening of peace was about to turn into an evening of chaos.

The drive to the restaurant was pleasant. The angels made small talk about their assignments that day and Gloria read her book.

Fifteen minutes later Tess pulled into a restaurant parking lot.

Gloria looked out the window and saw the title of the restaurant "Red Robin".

"It's a grown up place to eat!" Gloria exclaimed excitedly. With that, she tried to unbuckle herself in a hurry to get out of the car as if the restaurant would disappear if she wasn't out in a millisecond.

Since Gloria was in a hurry to unbuckle herself, she couldn't exactly find where the buckle was located. This caused her to become frustrated and make a whimpering noise which Monica caught.

"Gloria, the restaurant isn't going anywhere darlin'." She assured her charge. She smiled as she reached over and unbuckled her little one.

Gloria nodded her head. She grinned while expressing her feelings to her supervisor.

"I know. I'm just excited!"

Monica smiled as she got out of the car on Andrew's side and reached out her hand to Gloria to help her out of the backseat.

The angels walked across the parking lot towards the restaurant.

As they walked, Monica made sure to hold on to Gloria's hand tightly so she wouldn't run off in her excitement or get lost.

Tess had already made reservations so they were seated rather quickly. They sat at a booth, Tess and Andrew on one side and Monica and Gloria on the other.

The waitress gave them their menus and took their drink orders.

"My menu is small." Gloria remarked as she got up on her knees to lean over Monica's arm to look at her menu.

Monica looked over at her little one and smiled.

"That's because it's a special menu just for you. " With that, Monica guided Gloria to sit back down on her bottom.

"Let's see what's on your menu, sweetheart." The Irish angel encouraged her young charge. She wanted Gloria to see what she could order.

Gloria stuck her tongue in between her teeth as she looked at the menu.

Her eyes lit up upon seeing something she liked.

"I want the chicken finger basket!" She exclaimed.

Tess glanced over and gave her 'little angel a look.

"Indoor voice, Gloria."

Gloria looked over at Tess and frowned apologetically. She knew she had done something wrong. She had tried so hard to behave, but in all the excitement she had forgotten to use her indoor voice.

The child's gesture caused Andrew to hide his face behind his menu to prevent himself from laughing.

"Good choice, love. When the waitress comes back we'll order that for you." Monica explained.

Gloria nodded her head and picked up one of her crayons to color the picture on the front of her menu.

The waitress came back a few moments later to take their order.

"I'll have the Caesar salad." Tess told the waitress.

Andrew followed by saying, "I'll have the cheeseburger with bottomless fries, please."

Monica waited for the waitress to look over at her before giving her the order.

"I'll have the chicken fettuccini with broccoli." Monica then looked over at Gloria, "Gloria, can you tell her what you would like to eat?"

Gloria nodded her head and looked up at the waitress.

"May I have the chicken fingers please?"

The waitress smiled and wrote it down.

"I'll go put this in."

"Gloria, how was your first day of school?" Andrew asked as he folded his hands on the table and looked over at her smiling.

"Good! I made two friends, Min and Grace. They're really nice! We played house with Disney dolls." Gloria explained to Andrew, trying to remember to use her indoor voice.

"Well, that sounds like fun." Andrew replied. "Do you like your teacher?"

Gloria nodded her head vigorously.

"Uh huh! Miss Melody is really nice. I like her." Gloria paused and thought of what else had occurred that day. "And guess what else, Andrew? Guess what!"

"What!" He asked, mimicking the little girl's excitement.

"We have a pet in class! It's a bunny and her name is Snowball. I held her and she was calm and didn't try and get out of my arms!" She explained to him in one breath.

Tess and Monica smiled at Gloria's excitement over the bunny rabbit and waited for the question they knew was coming. Gloria turned to Monica just then.

"Can we get Snickers a bunny friend?"

Monica smiled and gently shook her head,

"I don't think so, honey. I think Snickers is perfectly content with you as her friend." The Irish angel tried to explain.

"I would take care of her. I take care of Snickers good." Gloria tried to explain to her supervisor.

"Little angel, first of all, it is well. Secondly, we don't need another pet. Snickers is just fine for you." Tess interjected.

Gloria stuck out her lower lip in a pout and sat back in her seat. She gave Tess a curious look just then. Something her superior had said made her think of something.

"Like the song?" She asked, remembering the hymn Tess had taught her.

"What do you mean, baby?" She asked.

"You said 'it is well. Are you talking about the song?"

Monica tried her best to hide her giggle, but it was hard. Tess had really landed herself in a hole with this one.

Realizing what Gloria was getting at, Tess let a laugh escape her lips.

Shaking her head, she reached across the table and squeezed Gloria's hand.

"What?" Gloria asked. "What did I say?"

Instead of replying verbally, Tess just smiled at her.

"You have to admit," Monica spoke up, trying unsuccessfully not to laugh, "you opened yourself up for that one."

Tess narrowed her eyes, but her three angel babies could see a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

Monica decided not to acknowledge the bunny topic any further. She hoped that when the food came, Gloria would perk up and the disappointment would be forgotten. Little did Monica know what was in store for them.

Their food came out a few minutes later. Everything was perfect to the angels except to Gloria.

Gloria eyed her plate of chicken tenders and fries, which were fine. The waitress had even given her extra honey mustard, which was Gloria's favorite sauce to dip them in. She even dipped her french fries in it.

However, placed next to them was a pile of ugh, vegetables. She scrunched her nose and tugged on Monica's sleeve.

"I'm not so sure about those." Gloria remarked as she pointed to the carrot and corn medley that sat next to her chicken tenders and fries.

Monica looked over at her young charge and then at the plate.

"They're vegetables, love, they make you grow strong." She explained.

"I'm an angel, I don't need them." Gloria decided as she pushed them over to one side with her fork.

"I'm an angel and I'm eating broccoli." Monica pointed out to Gloria as she gestured to her plate.

"But you asked for it. I didn't." Gloria pointed out logically. She gestured to the angel of death who had started to eat his own meal. "Andrew didn't get vegetables and you're not telling him to eat them."

Andrew looked up at the mention of his name and set down his burger. He figured he would try and help Monica out a little bit.

"Well, I didn't get vegetables with my dinner." Andrew explained.

"You can have mine." Gloria offered sweetly.

Tess smirked at her 'little angel's actions. She then got an idea. She prayed it would work.

Before Andrew could speak up, the superior angel beat him to it.

"I bet they taste good. Andrew, why don't you taste them for her." She suggested

And before Andrew could protest, Tess took a spoonful of them and shoved it into the angel of death's mouth.

She made sure he didn't choke, but she did it quickly nonetheless.

Andrew looked at Tess and raised an eyebrow before glancing at Monica who just shrugged her shoulders. He then looked at Gloria who was eyeing him intently.

Andrew sighed before opening his mouth and Tess stuck the spoon in.

However, Andrew didn't swallow right away, in fact he made a face and then tried to cover it up.

Tess gave him a look. She then said in a sing song whisper, "Swallow them."

Andrew then proceeded to chew and swallow the vegetables.

After swallowing them, he looked over at Gloria and nodded his head.

"They taste great, Gloria. You should eat them."

Gloria eyed him before sticking her fork in a carrot.

"I don't know. Can't I just eat my chicken and French fries and then get ice cream?" She asked Monica.

Monica shook her head.

"In order to get ice cream, you need to finish all your food which includes your vegetables, sweetheart." She gently explained.

Gloria sighed and looked at her plate.

"But I don't want them." She whined as she dropped her fork onto her plate.

"Can you try and eat some of them?" Monica asked trying to encourage her. "Give them a chance."

Gloria shook her head.

"I'm not eating them, Monica." She said defiantly.

Tess sighed and looked at Monica. She gave her a look that clearly told her they couldn't let Gloria get away with that.

Monica nodded in agreement. She leaned over

to Gloria.

"I think we need to have a wee talk. Come on." She said in a very gentle, loving voice.

Gloria gulped before sliding out with Monica.

Monica took her hand and gently led her outside the restaurant. She led her to a bench and helped her sit down on it.

Once Gloria was settled, Monica knelt in front of her so she was eye level with her charge..

"Gloria, I'm not mad at you." She started off to reassure her daughter who had a look of nervousness on her face. "I'm a wee disappointed in your actions though."

"Because I won't eat my vegetables?" Gloria asked softly.

"It's not just that, honey. It's also the way you were talkin' to me." The Irish angel explained. "You had a wee attitude. And you know Tess and I don't tolerate that. We've raised you better than that."

Gloria looked up at Monica and nodded. She swung her legs nervously.

"I didn't mean to! I just didn't want to eat my vegetables."

"I know, sweetheart, but they're good for you. And since you are so little, they are especially good for you right now. I'm even eating them." Monica pointed out gently.

Gloria sighed.

"I just don't like the taste of them." Gloria explained.

"I know. Maybe we could put a little salt and pepper on them to give it some flavor. Remember if you finish them you get ice cream." Monica reminded her.

Gloria nodded her head again.

"I can try." She decided.

"Sweetheart, I know there are going to be times when you don't like something, but you need to remember to use your nice words because words can hurt people." Monica gently explained to her daughter.

Gloria sniffled and nodded her head.

"I'm sorry." She whispered as a big tear rolled down her cheek.

"I know you are, little one. I forgive you." Monica answered as she reached out and pulled Gloria in for a hug.

Gloria hugged Monica back tightly and

rested her head on her shoulder.

After a few moments they pulled away.

"Ready to go back inside?" Monica asked.

"Uh huh. I'm gonna try and eat my vegetables and be a good angel!" She promised as she took her hand. The two walked hand in hand back to their table and took their seats again.

Gloria immediately picked up her fork and cautiously poked at some vegetables before putting them into her mouth.

The three angels watched and waited for a reaction. Once Gloria had swallowed she remarked, "They aren't so bad I guess."

The three angels sighed in relief. Tantrum avoided.

The rest of dinner went well as did desert.


	5. Chapter 5

DISCLAIMER: We DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 5

A few days later, Gloria was standing in front of Snowball's cage watching the bunny with excitement. She figured since she couldn't have her own bunny, she would play with the one at school as much as she could.

Grace shyly approached her a few moments later.

"Hi Grace!" Gloria exclaimed to her new friend when she saw her approaching.

"Hi Gloria." Grace replied softly as she dug her foot into the ground. She had something to ask Gloria, but she was very nervous to ask.

Gloria could sense that Grace had a question, so being the outgoing angel she was, she asked Grace, "What's going on?"

"Well, I asked my Mommy if I could have a friend sleepover and she said yes, so I was just wonderin' if you wanted to come sleep over tomorrow night?" Grace asked softly.

Gloria thought for a moment.

Her first reaction was to say no because she didn't want to be away from Monica for that long. She got very nervous when she didn't have her supervisor with her.

However, Gloria knew that Grace was her assignment and this would be a perfect chance to get to know her.

Gloria nodded.

"Sure! I'd like that! I'm sure Monica will let me." She answered.

Grace smiled a genuine smile to Gloria.

"Maybe our Mommies could talk to each other after school?"

Gloria nodded once again.

"Yeah 'cause Monica picks me up after school." She said happily.

Grace smiled. They turned their attention back to the bunny.

Both girls were looking forward to the end of the day. They could hardly sit still because they were so excited for their Mommies to talk about the sleepover. Both girls waited together for their respective parents to show up.

Min was out sick that day, so it was just Gloria and Grace.

Fortunately, they came at the same time.

Gloria ran over to Monica, who had bent down to greet her, and embraced her tightly.

"Monica! Grace invited me to a sleepover! Can you talk to her Mommy about it?" Gloria asked excitedly as she pointed over to where Grace was talking to her mother.

Monica smiled and gently let go of Gloria.

"Of course I can." She answered as she stood up straight . With that, the Irish angel took Gloria's hand and the two of them walked over to Grace and her mother Catherine.

"Monica! I didn't know you had a daughter." Catherine greeted Monica as she looked over at her and Gloria.

Monica smiled and nodded her head,

"Small world isn't it?"

Catherine nodded her head and smiled genuinely at Gloria. She then turned her attention back to Monica.

"Grace asked if she could have a friend sleepover, and she asked if it could be Gloria. I said it was all right if it was all right with you." She explained.

Monica nodded her head in agreement.

"I don't have any problem. What time shall I drop off my little one?"

"Well, we eat dinner at 5:30, if you want to drop her off at 5, so she can eat with us." Catherine answered, "that would be great."

"Wonderful, I'll bring her then." Monica answered. Gloria and Grace both jumped with delight over the thought of sleeping over with each other . They said their goodbyes and soon each pair was headed home.

"Tess! Guess what!" Gloria cried as she ran quite literally into the elder angel's arms the second she found her superior sitting on the backyard steps.

"What! What!" Tess asked. She was happy Gloria seemed more adjusted to her new Human form.

"I'm going to sleepover at Grace's house! Monica talked to Grace's Mommy and they said it was okay."

"That's great!" Tess exclaimed.

"Will you help me get ready?" Gloria asked hopefully.

Tess grinned.

"I sure will. But why don't you put your book bag away and say hi to Snickers first. Then after we eat a snack, I'll help you pack."

"Okay!" With that, Gloria was about to run off, when Tess pulled her back.

"Wait a minute, little angel." She said.

Gloria gave her a confused look.

"You forgot to give me a hug and kiss hello."

Gloria giggled and did so.

Once Tess pulled away, Gloria was off.

Monica giggled at her little one's actions. She was rather cute.

"I'm glad she's happy." Tess told her. "Sadly, this assignment is in danger of taking a turn for the worst."

"What do you mean?" Monica inquired as she sat down next to her friend.

Tess shook her head.

"There's a storm on the horizon, angel girl. And if we're not ready for it, things could go bad quickly."

Monica sighed as she felt Tess pull her close. She relaxed as Tess wrapped her in a hug.

After the two angels sat there in comfortable silence for a few minutes, Tess decided to go and help Gloria pack for her sleepover.

When the elder angel entered Gloria's room, she found her telling Snickers all about her upcoming plans with Grace.

"Sorry, Snickers, but sleepovers are for people. But I promise I'll tell you everything when I get back." With that, Gloria patted Snickers on the head and giggled as the cat rubbed up against her and purred.

"Are you ready to get started?" Tess asked as she stepped into the room.

"Yes!" Gloria shouted out of excitement. "Please!"

Since Gloria had used her nice words, Tess didn't bother to remind her to use her indoor voice this time.

After Gloria had a snack of apple slices and peanut butter with pineapple juice, Tess kept her word and helped her pack for the sleepover.

They packed Gloria's Belle pj's, along with her princess Jasmine toothbrush with Cinderella toothpaste and her plush Ariel doll in her Little Mermaid duffle bag. They also packed her Disney princess sleeping bag, along with her Belle pillow and her Tinkerbell blanket.

Gloria also picked a book or two to bring just in case she couldn't sleep at first. Little did Gloria know how much trouble she would have with that very thing later on.

After Gloria was ready, she spent some time with Monica before the Irish angel dropped her off at Grace's house. She was going to miss her. She was also going to miss Tess as well.

As Gloria sat on Monica's lap as they were finishing up reading "Karen's Yo Yo" together, Tess came into the room.

Gloria's eyes lit up upon seeing her superior. She jumped from Monica's lap and raced over to her.

"Tess! Tess, will you sing to me, please? Please!" Gloria begged. She remembered to use her indoor voice as best she could.

Tess smiled down at her 'little angel. She acted like she was thinking about it, which made Gloria give her a hopeful look.

"Now how can I deny a request like that?" Tess asked.

Gloria shrugged.

"Aw, come here, little angel." With that, Tess picked the little girl up and sat down on the couch with the child in her lap. "What would you like me to sing?"

Gloria didn't need to think before she asked, "Sing "When You Can't Move the Mountain" please? Please?"

"All right." She replied. With that, she sang the hymn Gloria loved so much.

After Tess was done singing the song for the second time, Gloria grinned and gave her a hug.

"Thank you."

"Aw, you're very welcome, sweetheart. I want you to have fun tonight, okay? And remember to listen to Grace's parents and use your indoor voice and your nice words."

"I will." Gloria promised.

"Good girl." Tess praised. She hugged the child close one more time before letting her go to play the piano.

Both angels enjoyed hearing Gloria play. They knew the youngest member of their family had a God given talent for music.

Tess knew Gloria enjoyed making a joyful noise unto their Heavenly Father. Tess enjoyed singing herself. She also liked singing with Gloria whenever they got the chance to sing together.

Meanwhile over at the Smith household, Grace was trying to get her room ready for Gloria. She didn't have many toys, but she did have a few special things. Her mother had promised they could watch a movie in the den and eat popcorn.

Grace had chosen "Beauty and the Beast." It was her favorite and she hoped Gloria liked it as well.

In case Gloria didn't like B and B so much, the little girl had also chosen a movie that had two episodes of "The Little Mermaid" TV Series on them. She wanted to make this visit special for Gloria. She really did like her and she wanted to be a good hostess.

As Grace was making her bed and putting a stack of books away so Gloria could put her stuff down, she heard her bedroom door swing open.

Turning around with two books in her hand, Grace looked up to meet the cold grey eyes of her father.

Richard Smith stood there, glaring down at his daughter.

"What did I tell you to do!" He practically roared at her.

Grace tried her best to think. She didn't want to get in trouble right before Gloria came.

"Ta-to clean my room?" She asked timidly. She prayed she had gotten it right.

Richard shook his head as he threw her book bag across the room. It nearly hit Grace in the stomach as it landed near her bed.

"I told you to put this away! Why don't you ever listen? Well, I think you need a reminder of what happens to little girls who don't listen." With that, he raised his hand to slap her, but a voice stopped him.

"Richard, please. Don't start tonight. Grace's friend is coming over."

As quick as lightening, Richard advanced on his wife of the last eight years.

"Why did you tell her she could have someone over without asking me? That's all I need is another brat around here! Huh? Why didn't you ask me!" With that, he slapped Catherine across the face before yanking her out of the doorway and down the hall.

Grace started to cry, feeling guilty for causing her mother's pain. It wasn't her fault of course, but she still felt guilty. If only she had remembered to put her back pack away before she had started cleaning her room, then this never would have happened. But she didn't and now, her mother was getting in trouble because of her.

Suddenly the sleepover didn't seem like a good idea anymore.

Grace just prayed her father wouldn't hurt her in front of Gloria.

As the tears cascaded down her face, she curled in a ball in a far corner of her room and cried.

She could still hear her parents yelling and her father hitting her mother in the next room. She just wanted the yelling and hitting to stop.

Grace didn't know how long she had been sitting there, but she soon heard a door slam followed by silence.

A soft knock at her door brought the little girl out of her thoughts.

"Grace, sweetheart? Are you okay?" Came Catherine's gentle voice.

Catherine's heart broke at the sight of her daughter crying on the floor. She rushed to her side and picked her up. She sat down on the bed with her baby in her arms.

"I'm sorry, Mommy!" Grace cried suddenly. "I'm sorry!"

Catherine was taken aback by her daughter's words.

"Honey, you have nothing to be sorry for. Why are you apologizing?"

Grace hiccupped as she tried to catch her breath.

"Be-ba-because Daddy hit you and it's my fault!"

"No it's not. Grace Elizabeth Smith, look at me." Catherine commanded gently.

Grace did so.

Once the young woman was sure she had her daughter's full attention, she continued to speak.

"None of this is your fault." She said truthfully. "Daddy's just mean, that's all."

"If I put my book bag away, he wouldn't have hurt you!" Grace insisted.

"That's not true." Catherine said. "He would have found another reason."

Grace nodded. This was probably true.

Catherine then smiled through her remaining tears.

"Come on now. No more tears. Cheer up. Gloria will be here soon."

Grace shook her head.

"I don't want to have the sleepover anymore." She confessed.

Catherine was taken aback by her daughter's words.

"Why? Gloria's sweet and you two were so excited earlier. You're gonna have so much fun."

Grace shook her head.

"No we won't. Daddy will ruin it. I don't want Gloria to get hurt."

Catherine hugged her daughter close out of love. Her daughter never ceased to amaze her with the love she harbored for others.

"Daddy would never hurt anyone he didn't know." Catherine assured her. "And I promise, he won't ruin your sleepover."

"Okay." Grace said with a sigh.

"Aw, that's my girl. All right. Let's get your room ready and then we'll order the pizza."

Grace's eyes lit up at the sound of this. The sight of her smile made her mother grin as well. She loved seeing her daughter happy.

Seeing Grace smile was a rare treat and Catherine relished in the few precious smiles she got from her baby girl.

Five o' clock came sooner than Gloria thought it would. Before she knew it, she was standing on Grace's doorstep with Monica. They had just rung the doorbell and were now waiting for someone to answer the door.

Catherine opened the door a few minutes later.

Monica smiled when she saw her. She tried her best not to react to the bruise forming on her right cheek, but it was hard.

When Catherine saw Monica, she smiled before giving Gloria a sincere grin.

"Hi you guys. Come on in." With that, she opened the door to let the two in the house.

Stepping inside, Gloria clutched Monica's hand firmly. She had her duffle bag over her shoulder and her plush Ariel in her other hand.

"Grace will be down in a minute." Catherine told them. "She just had to finish cleaning up a little bit."

Monica nodded.

"That's fine. Either I or one of Gloria's other relatives will be by to pick her up tomorrow around eleven am. Is that okay?"

"That's fine." Catherine replied.

Just then, Grace came downstairs. She smiled when she saw Gloria with Monica.

The two girls hugged and Grace pulled Gloria towards the stairs.

"Come see my room!" She exclaimed.

Catherine smiled at her daughter's excitement. Even so, she gently said, "Indoor voice, Grace."

Grace frowned.

"Okay, Mommy. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, sweetie." Catherine assured her.

Monica smiled at this exchange.

"We tell this little one the same thing at home." She smiled down at Gloria lovingly and gave her a hug.

Catherine turned her attention to her daughter at that point.

"Gracie, why don't' you let Gloria say good bye to her Mommy and then you can show her your room."

Grace nodded.

Monica knelt down to Gloria's level and embraced the little girl lovingly.

"I love you, little one. I'll see you tomorrow, okay? Remember what Tess talked to you about. Be a good girl and listen to Mr. and Mrs. Smith."

"Okay, Monica. I love you."

"Aw, I love you too, sweetheart. I love you so much." With that, Monica gave Gloria one more kiss and hug before thanking Catherine and leaving the house.

Once Monica was gone, Gloria felt the butterflies returning. She hugged her Ariel doll close as she stood there a little uncertainly.

She didn't have much time to feel nervous because Grace spoke up just then.

"Come on! We can play a game until the pizza comes." With that, she led Gloria up the stairs.

Once they entered Grace's room, Gloria started feeling better.

The room had pink and purple wallpaper and a pink carpet on the floor.

The bed had a pink comforter on it and two pink pillows. A doll sat on the bed, but there were no plush animals in sight.

As for other toys, Gloria saw a bookshelf full of books and games sitting against the far left wall.

"Wanna play Candy Land?" Grace asked.

"Okay!" Gloria agreed. SHE put her stuff next to Grace's bed before settling down to play the game with her new friend.

Before the girls new it, they had played two games of Candy Land. They were just about to start a game of house when they heard a commotion outside the door.

Grace tried to ignore it, but Gloria was becoming increasingly nervous. She didn't like it when grown ups yelled-especially men.

"I told you," Catherine said, trying to be as calm as possible, "they're upstairs playing. That's why they didn't hear you. I'll bring the girls downstairs."

"Don't bother." Richard shot back. "I'll get them." With that, he headed for the stairs.

Grace shot a nervous look in Gloria's direction.

Gloria was starting to shake. She didn't like the sound of this and she prayed with all her heart that God would protect them.

Just then, Grace's bedroom door banged open.

Grace glanced up to see her father standing there. He didn't look happy, which made Gloria shake even harder. She was trying not to cry, but it wasn't easy.

"Grace, why didn't you come down for dinner? I called you three times!" Richard shouted angrily.

"I-I'm sorry. We didn't hear you." Grace said. SHE indicated her small CD player that was sitting on the book shelf. They had been listening to a CD of Disney music they both liked.

Richard nodded. He glared at the device as though it had offended him.

"Next time I call you, you better come. Or you'll be sorry. Do you hear me?" With that, he grabbed Grace and shook her slightly.

The rough motion caused the little girl to hit her left arm on the bed. SHE tried not to cry out, but it was hard.

"Ya-yes!" Grace whimpered. She prayed if she answered, he would leave her alone.

"Good. Now come downstairs and eat!" With that, he left. As he left, he slammed the door.

Grace took a few minutes to gain her balance. Once she was able to stand, she gazed over at Gloria to make sure she was okay.s

Gloria was far from okay at this point. She was shaking so badly, her stomach was starting to hurt. She was also crying silently, the tears making it hard for her to see.

Just then, Catherine came into the room. SHE frowned at the sight she found. She gave Grace a hug before turning her attention to Gloria.

"Gloria, oh sweetheart, it's okay. It's okay now. Everything's okay."

"I wanna go home!" Gloria cried. The first words she had spoken since witnessing her friend being hurt by her earthly father. "I want my Mommy!"

"Aw, it's okay, sweetie. It's okay. I promise. You know what we're gonna do after dinner?"

Gloria shook her head. She didn't want to be rude, but a part of her really didn't care. All she wanted was to go home where she knew she was safe. She just wanted to be in Monica's arms.

Catherine continued to speak. She hoped the idea of a movie would convince Gloria to stay.

"We're gonna watch a movie." She told the frightened little girl. "Gracie picked out two movies for us. Do you like Beauty and the Beast?"

Gloria nodded. Secretly she liked The Little Mermaid better, but she liked Belle too. In fact, Beauty and the Beast was her third favorite movie, next to Tinkerbell.

"Well that's the movie we have. We also have one with Ariel in it too."

This got Gloria to smile a little bit.

"Aw, that's a girl. Now, why don't I help you wash your face and we'll go downstairs. I bought pizza for you girls."

"Tha-thank you." Gloria managed to say as a small sob escaped her lips.

"Aw, you're welcome, sweetie. There you go. Come on." With that, Catherine lead the little girl to the bathroom.

After she helped Gloria wash her face, she led both girls downstairs.

Dinner went by as peacefully as possible. Everything was going fine until Grace accidentally spilled her juice. She had been reaching for Ketch up and her arm knocked into it.

Unfortunately, it splashed onto a stack of papers Richard had been working on for work.

He glared at Grace before starting to yell at her.

Catherine tried to quell his anger, but she wasn't successful.

"Look what you did!" He shouted. "Look what YOU DID NOW!" With that, Richard got up and advanced towards Grace.

In one swift move, he pulled her to her feet and dragged her into the downstairs bathroom.

The sound of her crying and begging him not to hurt her affectively set Gloria off again. She was shaking and a fresh set of tears had started to fall from her eyes.

Catherine sighed. She knew there was no convincing Gloria to stay now. She knew deep down in her heart that Gloria wasn't safe here.

Kneeling down to the child's level, Catherine gave her a hug in an effort to help her feel better.

"It's okay, Gloria. It's all right. Would you like me to call your Mommy to pick you up?"

Gloria nodded.

"Pe-please? I wanna go home! I want my Mommy! I just want my Mommy!" She sobbed, breaking Catherine's heart.

"Okay." Catherine said gently. "Let me call her." With that, she picked up the phone and dialed Monica's cell phone number.


	6. Chapter 6

DISCLAIMER: We DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 6

By the time Catherine had called Monica's cell phone, it had been ten minutes since Richard had punished Grace.

Instead of Monica, a male voice answered.

After the person, Andrew, had explained who he was and that he would be by to pick Gloria up as soon as possible, Catherine thanked him and hung up.

She relayed the message to Gloria, who calmed after hearing the news. Catherine didn't tell her who was picking her up. She didn't want to set her off again.

Catherine managed to get Gloria to eat one piece of pizza and drink some juice before going to check on Grace.

Richard had left just as Gloria was finishing her dinner.

"Grace is in her room. If she comes out before an hour's up…" He left the sentence unfinished as he grabbed his keys and left the house, slamming the door behind him.

Catherine waited until she heard the car pull out of the driveway and head down the street before going to free Grace from her room.

She put the movie on for Gloria and told her she would be back soon. She assured the little girl that Richard wasn't coming back for a long time.

Gloria believed her, but she was still really afraid. she clutched her Ariel doll tightly and prayed Monica would be there soon.

When Catherine entered Grace's room, she found her daughter crying on her bed. She was covered in bruises and her mother could see a cut on her right cheek.

"Oh baby, I'm so sorry." Catherine whispered. She sat down on the bed and held her arms out to her distraught daughter.

Grace wasted no time in crawling into them. She buried her face in her mother's shoulder and let out a sob.

But when she spoke, her question didn't surprise her mother in the least.

"Is Gloria okay?"

Catherine nodded.

"Yes. She's watching the Ariel movie now. She's really scared. She wants to go home. I've called Monica to pick her up. A friend of the family is coming to pick her up soon. I'm so sorry, sweetheart."

"It's not your fault." Grace said. "You didn't do anything wrong."

"I wanted you girls to have fun tonight." Catherine told her.

Grace nodded.

Mother and daughter stayed that way for a few minutes before Catherine remembered Gloria was downstairs.

Kissing her daughter's left cheek, she picked her up and carried her to the bathroom so she could clean her up.

Meanwhile back at the angels' house, Tess and Monica were sitting in the living room. They were spending some time together and just enjoying each other's company.

Tess also wanted to know how Monica's part of the assignment was going.

Her 'angel girl had been more quiet than usual. This worried the elder angel, but she knew Monica would talk to her when she was ready.

As Monica stared into the fire, she sipped her tea in an attempt to avoid the inevitable.

Tess gazed over at her worriedly.

"So how bad is it?" She asked.

Monica took another sip of tea. She was trying her best to stall. She really didn't want to answer the question, but she knew she had to. She gazed into the fire once again and then out the window. She didn't have the heart to look Tess in the eye when she told her what she needed to know.

Tess sighed as she tried yet again to get Monica's attention.

"It'll get better." She assured her.

"Ha…How did you….?" Monica asked in surprise. She gazed up at Tess in surprise.

Tess chuckled softly.

"You don't really need me to answer that question. I've known you since before you became a case worker. I know when you're hiding something from me. Just like I know when our little Gloria did something wrong she doesn't want me to know about. So let's have it, angel girl. What's going on?"

Monica sighed. She knew it was now or never. She also knew never wasn't an option.

"She won't listen to me, Tess. It's like I try to talk to her and she just shuts me out. Even when the truth is staring her straight in the face, she denies it! She denies it all for someone who doesn't care about anyone but himself! I can't stand to see her and that little girl suffer all because she can't face the truth and take the first steps to freeing herself from his hold."

Monica wasn't even aware that she had started to cry until she felt Tess pull her in for a hug.

"It'll be all right, angel girl. The Father has everything under control. He'll see them through this. His timing is perfect. You'll get through to her in His time. I know you will."

"But what if it's too late?" Monica asked tearfully.

Tess shook her head.

"Now you know better than that, Ms. Wings. You know perfectly well with God, it's never too late." With that, Tess hugged the Irish angel close and let her cry her frustration and fear out. She hadn't held her 'angel girl in a while and it felt good to comfort her again.

Just then, Andrew appeared. He looked worried and Tess caught on right away.

"What is it, angel boy?" She asked.

Andrew sighed.

"I have to go." He told her. "I'll be back."

"Where are you going?" Tess asked. She still had a loving, but firm hold on Monica.

Andrew chanced a glance at Monica before his green eyes met those of Tess.

"It's Gloria." He replied.

This got Monica's attention. She lifted her head from Tess's shoulder and looked anxiously at her long time friend.

"What about Gloria? Is she all right?"

Andrew shrugged.

"I don't know. Catherine just called me and told me she wants to come home. Something happened and she started crying and got really scared. I'm gonna get her now."

"I'm going with you." Monica declared, but Tess held fast.

"Oh no you're not, Ms. Wings. You're staying right here. Gloria's going to need you when she comes home. She'll be all right with Andrew. I promise."

Monica was about to protest, but one look into Tess's concerned eyes and she thought better of it. She knew Tess was right. Still, that didn't stop her from worrying.

After Andrew promised Tess he would take care of her car, he was off.

Meanwhile back at the Smith household, once Grace's injuries were cleaned up, Catherine carried her downstairs so they could wait for Andrew to show up.

The girls watched some of the movie in silence.

Ariel's singing comforted Gloria, but what she really wanted was to be with Monica.

Just then, the doorbell rang.

Catherine answered it to find a man with green eyes and blond hair standing on the other side. He gave her a friendly smile.

"Hi. My name is Andrew. We spoke earlier on the phone? I'm here to pick Gloria up."

"Of course. Come on in. I'm so sorry for any trouble." Catherine apologized guiltily.

Andrew shook his head.

"It's no trouble at all." Andrew told her sincerely.

Catherine nodded and sighed with relief. She led the angel of death into the living room where the girls were currently sitting.

Andrew's heart broke at the sight of Gloria. She was sitting on the couch and she looked terrified. She had her Ariel doll clutched tightly in her arms and the angel could see the child had been crying.

"Gloria." Andrew said gently. He knelt down in front of her so he was on her level. As he did so, he held out the bear Monica had won for her at a fair a few weeks ago.

Gloria recognized Andrew's voice and looked up. When she saw him kneeling in front of her, she ran into his arms, the tears anew. She didn't even take the bear for a few minutes. All she wanted was someone familiar to hold her. She really wanted her mother, but she would settle for any member of her family at this point.

"Shh, it's okay, sweetheart. It's all right now. I'm gonna take you home." He assured her while picking her up

"I want Monica!" Gloria cried. "I want Monica!"

"I know you do, honey. I know. You'll see her soon. I promise." With that, he handed Gloria the bear while shouldering her duffle bag that Catherine had just handed him.

After he had thanked her, he and Gloria were off.

After Andrew had gotten Gloria in her booster seat, he got in the driver's seat and headed for their house.

The ten minute drive was silent for the first few minutes. Gloria broke it three minutes later. Her voice was tearful, but she got her point across none the less.

"Is Monica waiting for me?" She asked.

"She sure is." Andrew replied. "In fact, I Think she's making you two hot chocolate as we speak."

This made Gloria feel a little bit better. She was still in tears, but her breathing had gone back to normal for the most part.

"Do you wanna talk about what happened?" Andrew offered kindly. "What scared you?"

Gloria took a deep breath before answering her friend's question.

"Grace's Daddy scared me! He's mean and he…he hurt Grace and her Mommy! I was so scared!" She cried. Her voice broke as a new set of tears streamed down her face.

They had pulled into the driveway by this point.

Andrew stopped the car and went around to the back to get Gloria out.

The minute they entered the house, Gloria heard her mother's voice before she saw her.

Hearing her familiar and gentle Irish lilt was enough to send Gloria over the edge emotionally.

She started crying all over again and begging Andrew to put her down. She wanted one angel and that angel was Monica.

Just then, Monica came into the room to see what all the commotion was about.

When she saw Gloria struggling in Andrew's gentle embrace and heard her sobs, her love for Gloria took over. She rushed to Andrew's side and took her scared little one into her arms.

"Shh, it's okay, Gloria. It's okay now. Monica has you now. You're safe, sweetheart. You're with Monica. It's all right…" She assured her shaking daughter. "It's okay. That's my little one. That's my little one..." With that, Monica started swaying back and forth, trying to calm Gloria down. She looked to Andrew for the answer and he told her what Gloria had told him.

After Andrew was done explaining, he got an actual assignment from the Father, so he had to leave.

Once Andrew was gone, Monica turned her attention to her daughter.

The child had calmed down a little, but she was still really upset.

"It was scary!" Gloria whimpered as Monica carried her into the den.

"I know, sweetheart. I know." Monica assured her. "But you're safe now. You're back home. It's okay. Would you like some hot chocolate?"

This distracted Gloria for a minute. SHE nodded and managed to say please in between whimpers.

As Monica sat down, she made the mistake of trying to set Gloria down in order to get the drinks. This just set her off again. She didn't want to be anywhere but in Monica's arms and she was going to make her point clear.

Monica got the message and called Tess for back up.

Tess was all too willing to help. She hated seeing Gloria in pain. She wanted to help her, but it was clear who Gloria preferred right now.

Monica handed Gloria her cup and tried to get her settled so she could drink it.

It became apparent two minutes into her attempt that Gloria wasn't having any of it at the moment.

"Our little Gloria's gonna be okay." Tess spoke wisely. "She's just been through a scary experience. As long as you affirm that she's safe and give her what she needs, she'll be fine in the Father's time."

Monica nodded as she hugged her 'little one close. She planted a kiss on her cheek before starting to stroke her hair.

"I hope you're right, Tess." The Irish angel said softly as she gazed down at her shaking daughter. "I really hope you're right."

Tess smiled slightly despite the situation.

"You know I am, Ms. Wings." With that, she took her own empty cup to the kitchen before heading for the music room. She wanted to give Monica and Gloria some time alone. She knew they needed some quality time together if Gloria was ever going to feel better. She needed to talk about what happened and Tess knew if anyone could get her talking it was Monica. The only question was, how long would it take?

If there was one thing Tess was sure of, it was that everything would work out in the Father's time. All they had to do was have faith and let Him handle the rest.

"I'm really sorry you got scared tonight." Monica told her softly. "But now you know why it's so important that we do well on this assignment."

Gloria nodded. She was almost half asleep.

"I love you." Gloria mumbled before drifting off to dreamland.

Monica smiled down at her little one as she held her close.

"I love you too, sweetheart. I love you so much. Sweet dreams." With that, Monica sat there, holding Gloria and praying that she would be okay soon.

As the Irish angel tucked her charge in a few minutes later, she had a feeling that storm Tess had mentioned was already starting to reach them. Little did Monica know how right she was…


	7. Chapter 7

DISCLAIMER: We DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 7

The following morning Gloria woke up and sat up in her bed. She remembered it was Saturday which was why no one had come to wake her up.

Gloria was debating on whether or not to read when her stomach started growling. She was hungry. Gloria sighed as she scooched her little self off her bed and opened her bedroom

door. She didn't see anyone in the hallway so she headed down the stairs to see if anyone was down there. She didn't see any other angel so she decided to take matters into her own hands. She knew for cereal that she needed milk, the cereal, a bowl, and a spoon.

The little girl walked into the kitchen and tried to remember which cabinet contained the bowls. She decided to try the ones directly in front of her. She approached the counter and tried to think of a way to get up there to reach a bowl.

She then noticed some drawers directly in front of her and decided to use those as stepping stools to help her climb up. She carefully pulled out one drawer at a time and cautiously climbed up onto the counter. After a few moments she had successfully climbed up onto the counter. She carefully stood up and had just opened the cabinet when Andrew walked into the kitchen to get a cup of coffee.

He spotted Gloria and was careful not to scare her when he spoke.

"Gloria." He gently called to her.

Gloria froze on the counter with her hand in the cabinet. She turned her head and saw Andrew.

"Hi Andrew." Gloria greeted him as she thought of what to do next.

"I don't think you should be climbing up on the counter. It doesn't seem like the safest thing." Andrew remarked as he walked over to her. He gently placed his hands underneath her armpits and gently lifted her off the counter and set her down on the floor.

"I just wanted to get a bowl so I could have cereal. I'm hungry Andrew." She explained to him frowning.

"I think we can fix that. But next time maybe you should come find one of us, I don't want you getting hurt." Andrew explained to her as he ruffled her hair. "And I don't think you want Tess seeing you walking around on her counter with your bare feet." Andrew winked at her which caused Gloria to giggle.

Andrew reached into the cupboard and grabbed a bowl and proceeded to get Gloria a bowl of cereal.

"Why don't you go ahead and sit down at the

table and I'll bring this to you?" Andrew suggested to his young friend.

Gloria nodded her head and skipped into the dining room and waited as patiently as she could for Andrew to walk in with her cereal. He did come in a few moments later. After Gloria had thanked God for the food, she started to eat.

Andrew decided to join her and began reading the newspaper and drinking a cup of coffee.

About ten minutes later, Monica came down the stairs however, she was on her cell phone with her assignment at the moment.

Gloria immediately heard her supervisor's voice and got up from the table without asking. This was a big no-no in the angel's house.

It was more of a no-no of Tess's, but Andrew and Monica tried to stick to it as well. This way Gloria wouldn't become confused and mixed up as to whose rules were whose.

Gloria was quite disappointed to see Monica pouring herself a cup of coffee with one hand and the other hand holding her phone to her ear. She hadn't even said good morning to her, which was very unusual.

Gloria decided to still go up to Monica and try and get her attention.

She gently tugged on Monica's skirt band to get her attention.

Monica looked down. When she saw who it was, she gave her a loving smile. She put a finger to her lips, indicating she would be done soon. She then ruffled Gloria's hair in an effort to silently let her know she loved her.

This was not what Gloria was expecting. She wanted a cuddle. She hadn't seen Monica all morning and she just wanted to have her supervisor hold her.

Monica however, was having an important conversation with Catherine which couldn't wait. She picked up her cup of coffee and took a sip as she listened to the other line.

Gloria decided she was going to sit at Monica's feet and wait for her to get off the phone.

Tess came into the kitchen a few moments later and noticed this.

"Little angel, what are you doing?" She asked.

"I want to spend time with Monica, but she's on the phone so I'm waiting." She explained never taking her eyes off Monica.

"Mmm, I see, well why don't you and I go cuddle in the living room and I'll sing to you." Tess suggested as she reached out a hand to the child.

Gloria ignored the hand and shook her head.

"I don't want you. I want Monica." She said a bit firmly.

Tess raised an eyebrow and looked down at her little angel.

"Gloria, Monica is having an important phone call right now. Why don't you finish your breakfast since I can see your bowl on the table. I'm sure when you're finished she'll be off the phone." Tess encouraged.

Gloria shook her head.

"I want Monica." Gloria repeated, not sure if Tess had heard her the last time. She glared at her superior as she added, "I'm not moving until she's off the phone." She said firmly to the elder angel. "Stop tellin' me to move."

Unbeknownst to the youngest angel, she was pushing some major buttons with Tess at the moment.

Gloria stood up and once again tugged on Monica's arm to get her attention. She made whimpering noise that indicated she was probably going to start whining which was something no angel in that house tolerated.

Tess looked over at her and gave her a stern look.

"Gloria…" She started warningly. "Leave Monica be and let her finish her conversation. Why don't you go play with one of your toys?" She suggested.

"No! I want to see Monica!" She exclaimed.

"Gloria, indoor voice." Tess reminded her. She was losing her patience rather quickly.

"I don't care!" Gloria exclaimed. With that, she glared at Tess.

That was the last straw for the superior angel.

Tess looked down at Gloria firmly.

"Little angel, that is enough of your whining and defiance. You know you need to respect your elders. But it seems you need a little time to remember the rules of this house." With that, Tess reached out and picked Gloria up with ease.

The little girl gulped. She knew she had gone too far and to make matters worse, she had picked the wrong angel to test.

She reluctantly allowed Tess to carry her out of the room and into the living room for a quiet five minutes.

As they passed through the dining room, Gloria noticed Andrew.

"Andrew! I don't want time out! Tell her

to stop!" She begged to Andrew for help.

Andrew held up his hands and tried to explain it to Gloria in a way she would understand it. He made sure to use a gentle tone with her so she didn't think she was in trouble with him as well.

"I'm sorry Gloria, you know the rules and when you break rules there are consequences."

Gloria whimpered as she began to cry.

Tess gently, but firmly led her over to the couch and guided her to sit down.

"I want you to sit here for five minutes and think about why I had to put you in time out." Tess explained.

Gloria nodded her head as she sniffled and wiped at her eyes with her hands.

"I just wanted to see Monica." She whispered.

"And I know that. There's nothing wrong with that. That isn't why I put you here. Talking back in defiance, glaring at an elder angel, and whining are not acceptable in this family and you know that." Tess replied as she looked down at the young angel. "So think about all of that and when Monica is off the phone I'll send her in to talk with you." With that Tess left the young angel alone with her thoughts.

When Tess entered the kitchen, she found Monica had gotten off the phone.

The Irish angel turned around and noticed Gloria wasn't there anymore.

"Where's Gloria?" She asked. She then caught the expression on Tess's face and gave her a worried look. "Uh-oh. What happened?"

Tess sighed.

"Our little Gloria wanted to spend time with you, but she didn't want to wait. She then decided to push my buttons, so I had to put her on time out."

"Why?"

"She started whining and being defiant. She then decided to mouth off and glare at me."

Monica sighed.

"Do you want me to talk to her?" The Irish angel offered.

Tess nodded.

"If you don't mind. Because if I go in there, I'm gonna lose it."

"It's that bad, huh?" Monica guessed.

Tess nodded.

"I'm afraid so, angel girl."

Monica took a few deep breaths and began to pray. She hadn't expected the morning to go this badly.

''Father, please, help me get through to Gloria. You know how afraid she is and I know you'll help us in your time. Amen." With that, Monica went to talk to her 'little one.

Walking into the living room, the sight of Gloria crying on the couch made Monica's heart almost break right there. She felt partially responsible for the morning's events. If only she had given Gloria a little attention, then maybe this wouldn't have happened.

Despite the guilt that rose in Monica's heart, she knew she had to set things right with the little girl.

The Irish angel approached her daughter carefully. She didn't want to scare her. After all, Gloria wasn't looking up and hadn't noticed her supervisor enter the room.

"Gloria?" Monica said softly. "We need to talk, sweetheart." With that, she sat next to her and patted her lap. "Come and sit with me."

It was like Monica had said Christmas had come early. The child dove for the safety of her lap. She clung on once the Irish angel wrapped her arms around her.

A comfortable silence fell as supervisor and charge embraced, each comforted by the other's presence.

It wasn't long before Gloria broke the silence with a whimper, followed by an explanation.

"I'm sorry I was bad! I just wanted to cuddle with you!" She explained tearfully.

"I know, little one. I know. And I'm sorry too." Monica apologized.

"Why?" Gloria asked in surprise. She wasn't expecting this at all.

Monica sighed as she hugged her "daughter" close. Lord knew how much she loved this little girl she was now holding.

"I'm sorry because it's partially my fault you got in trouble. Now, you shouldn't have talked back to Tess, but maybe if I would have explained things to you a little better, this wouldn't have happened."

Gloria nodded. She understood a little better now. She cuddled into Monica as she felt her mother land a kiss to her left cheek.

"Can I go say I'm sorry to Tess?" She asked after a few minutes had passed.

Monica smiled. Her 'little one was truly a sweetheart.

"I think she'd like that very much." She confirmed. She leaned over and whispered in Gloria's ear and the little girl nodded, grinning. She jumped off Monica's lap and ran to find Tess. She just prayed Tess would accept her apology.

The little angel found her superior sitting in the music room. She was looking through a music book.

Cautiously, Gloria moved into the room. She didn't want to get another telling off from Tess.

Sensing someone in the doorway, Tess glanced up. When she saw the little girl standing there, she gave her a small smile before raising her eyebrows.

"Monica told me I could get up." Gloria started. She paused for a minute, not knowing what else to say.

After a few minutes of silence, the little angel continued.

"I-I'm sorry I was bad." She said softly. "I didn't mean to make you mad."

Tess sighed. She could tell her 'little angel was truly sorry for what she had done.

"Come here, little angel." She said.

"Really?" Gloria asked. Her tone was one of disbelief.

"Yes." The elder angel replied.

Gloria obeyed reluctantly. She was still a little unsure. All of her uncertainty went out the window the second Tess wrapped her in a hug.

"I love you, little angel." Tess told her sincerely. "I know you didn't misbehave on purpose. But you still need to obey the rules Monica, Andrew and I set for you. We make them because we love you and want you to stay safe. We also want you to learn right from wrong."

Gloria nodded.

"Okay. I love you too." She replied, snuggling into her superior's loving hold.

Eldest and youngest angel stayed that way for a long time. In fact, that's how Monica found them a half an hour later.

She smiled at the sight.

"I'm guessin' the apology went well. " The Irish angel assumed. She was whispering so she wouldn't wake the sleeping angel in Tess's arms.

Tess grinned at her 'angel girl.

"I think it's safe to say it did." She confirmed. She smiled down at Gloria who was fast asleep. "I think our little angel needs her rest."

"Want me to tuck her in?" The younger angel offered.

Tess shook her head.

"No. I'll do it. Besides, I wanna hold her for a little bit longer."

Smiling to herself, Monica left the room to finish reading the book she had started the night before.

Dinner that night went rather smoothly. Gloria ate everything on her plate-even the little carrot casserole Tess had prepared. She especially liked Monica's scalloped potatoes best of all, but she made sure to try to eat everything that was placed in front of her.

The three older angels were proud of Gloria for the effort she was making.

Before Gloria knew it, Monica had given her a bath and she was in Tess's lap in her pj's, listening to her superior tell her a story.

The rest of the day had gone well despite what had happened earlier that morning.

After Tess was done telling Gloria the story of Noah and his arc, she sung her a few songs to help her drift off.

"It works every time." Monica commented with a knowing grin.

Gloria was fast asleep in Tess's lap, content as ever.

"I almost hate to break up the cute picture." The Irish angel continued.

Tess chuckled softly.

"It's okay, angel girl. I need to get something done for my part of the assignment anyway. I'm going to make a surprise visit to Grace's father's job."

Monica raised her eyebrows in surprise as she lifted Gloria from Tess's embrace.

"You are?" She asked as she held Gloria close.

"Yup."

"So I'm guessin' that means Richard doesn't know you're coming."

Tess shook her head.

"Oh he knows I'm coming. HE just doesn't know when." With that, she winked in her angel babies direction before kissing Gloria's cheek and heading for the dining room.

Shaking her head, Monica carried her daughter upstairs. She loved her so much and she was very proud of her for the progress she had made on the assignment.

"I love you, little one." Monica whispered as she tucked the covers around the sleeping child. Sweet dreams. I'll see you in the morning." With that, the Irish angel sat there and watched the little girl-her little girl-sleep for a while. She loved Gloria with all her heart and she would do anything for her.

She knew Gloria had experienced a rough start to this assignment, but she was proud of how far she had come.

After the Irish angel had made sure Gloria was going to be okay, she left the room. Little did she know she would be seeing Gloria before the morning dawned…

A sudden crashing sound made the six-year-old jerk awake. As she sat up, another crash accompanied the first one. This one was louder than the last.

Gloria's brown eyes flickered to the window. She could hear rain splattering against the window. But she knew rain couldn't make that awful crashing and rumbling noise that had awoken her. But if it wasn't rain, that meant it was…

The third and fourth crash was all the little girl needed to confirm her thoughts.

Not bothering to shut the door, Gloria ran for the safest place she knew-her supervisor's arms.

She didn't even bother to be cautious about sneaking into the hallway. She just ran down it until she found the room she was looking for.

Once there, the little girl opened the door and peered around the frame.

When she saw the angel she wanted was awake, she wasted no more time.

Monica felt her presence before she glanced up and actually saw her.

The Irish angel's heart broke at the sight of her 'little one shaking with tears streaming down her face.

Without a word, Monica motioned for her daughter to join her.

The little girl didn't need anymore coaxing. She practically flew across the room into Monica's arms.

"Shh, it's okay, Gloria. It's okay. Monica has you now. Did the thunder scare you, my love?"

Gloria nodded as a sob escaped her lips.

"I don't wanna be alone, Monica!" Gloria whimpered. "Can I stay with you, please!"

Monica didn't even hesitate. She pulled Gloria close and planted a kiss on her cheek.

"Always, Gloria. Always. You don't even have to ask." SHE told her softly. "Come on, let's get you tucked in."

But as the Irish angel went to do so, Gloria shook her head and clung on tighter. She was comfortable and she was going to get her point across to her mother, no matter how long it took.

Smiling to herself, Monica started making calming circles on her 'little one's back, hoping it would calm her down.

It worked until an especially loud clap of thunder made Gloria cry out in fear.

"Shh, it's okay, Gloria. It's all right. The thunder can't hurt you, darlin'. It's just noise."

"But it's so loud and scary!" The six-year-old cried.

"I know it sounds that way." Monica soothed. "Why don't we pray and ask God to help you not be so afraid anymore."

"Do you think He will?" The little girl asked.

Monica smiled knowingly.

"I know He will." With that, the Irish angel took her charge's hands in hers and began to pray.

After the prayer, she sat there comforting Gloria through touch and talking to her softly.

In a matter of ten minutes, Gloria was almost asleep.

Tess poked her head in the room a few minutes later. She figured the storm had woken her 'little angel up. SHE also had a pretty good idea where Gloria was.

Pushing open the door, she smiled at the sight.

"I wish I had my camera." She commented, referring to how content Gloria looked in the Irish angel's embrace.

Monica shot her former supervisor a look. She knew the elder angel was only joking though.

"I had a feeling our little Gloria would be here." Tess said as she sat in a chair next to Monica's bed. "She always did feel safest with you, angel girl."

Monica nodded in agreement.

As she held Gloria close, she sent a silent prayer of thanks up to the Father. She loved her 'little one so much. The Irish angel didn't know what she would do without Gloria in her life.

The next morning, Tess stood at the door of Richard Smith's office. She was carrying a folder and a briefcase was in her left hand.

Richard opened the door a few minutes later. He gave Tess an expectant look.

"Who are you?" He demanded. He didn't even say hi.

Tess ignored this as she gave him a friendly smile.

"Hello there, baby. My name is Tess. I'm from social services. May I come in for a minute?"

Richard hesitated. He glared at Tess before his gaze traveled to the window.

"What are you doing here?" He demanded yet again. He hadn't stepped back to let her in. In fact, he was blocking the door.

Tess sighed. She prayed silently for patience as she tried to think of the best course of action that wouldn't result in her having grey hair by the time the meeting was over.

"Well we received a call earlier this afternoon from a neighbor. She stated there was a disturbance late at night and she was concerned for your daughter."

"The way I handle my family is my own business. Nobody else's."

"That's where you're wrong." Tess stated wisely. "I'd advise you listen before you land yourself in more trouble than you know how to get out of." With that, she continued to speak. She didn't even give Richard the chance to interrupt her.

By the time the meeting was over, Tess was confident that things would go according to the Father's plan.

If Richard Smith knew what was good for him, he would take her advice and seek help before it was too late.

As Tess drove back home, she smiled slightly. She couldn't wait to get back and spend time with Gloria.

Even though her 'little angel drove her up the wall sometimes, she enjoyed having Gloria in this new Human form. It took some getting used to, but it was a nice change.

Meanwhile, Monica was sitting at her usual coffee shop, waiting for Catherine to arrive. She prayed and hoped her friend didn't back out. She really wanted to help her. But she couldn't' do anything if Catherine wasn't truthful with her and with herself.

Spotting her friend standing near the counter, Monica waved her over. She gave her a friendly smile as she did so.

"Catherine, over here!"

Catherine gazed to where the voice was coming from. She managed a small smile for the Irish angel as she collected her drink and joined her.

"Hi." She greeted. "Sorry I'm late."

Monica shook her head dismissively.

"It's okay." She assured her. "I like people watching anyway."

Catherine nodded. She sighed before continuing to speak.

"I don't know if I should have called you last night." She began. "I just panicked when Richard started yelling. I Thought he was going to hit Grace. I couldn't let him do that. But I think a neighbor called the police or something." She looked scared as she relayed this info to her new friend.

"What makes you think that?" Monica asked.

"Because Richard called me right before I met you. He was mad. He said someone from social services came to talk to him."

Monica nodded. She had a feeling Tess had made her surprise visit.

"Did he say anything else?" She asked.

"He said we were going to "talk" when I got home." She shivered as the words left her mouth. She knew what "talk" meant in Richard's book.

A few minutes of silence fell over the two friends.

Just as Catherine was about to say something else, she caught sight of a familiar person gazing at a magazine.

"Oh God!" She whispered, starting to panic.

"What is it?" The Irish angel asked. She was gazing at Catherine with something of concern on her pretty Irish features.

"I think he followed me here." She explained softly.

"Richard?" Monica guessed. "But he couldn't have. He's at work, right?"

Catherine nodded as her frown deepened.

"Yes, but he has a break right now." And before Monica could stop her, she gathered up her things and stood to leave. "I'm sorry, Monica. I have to go." With that, she was gone.

"Catherine, wait!" She called, hoping to stall for time. But it was no use. She was already gone.

Monica sighed as she watched her friend leave the store. If the events that had just taken place were any indication of how hard this assignment was going to be, Monica had a feeling they were in for a long road. Little did the Irish angel know how right she was…


	8. Chapter 8

DISCLAIMER: WE DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 8

A week later, Gloria was sitting in her classroom when she got an idea. SHE was drawing a picture of Heaven for art class. She had decided to add two angels to the picture as well.

Beside her, Min was drawing a picture of a castle and a few princesses. She and Gloria sat together every chance they got. They invited Grace to sit with them as well.

Sometimes Grace would do so, but sometimes she would decline.

Gloria never forced her new friend to do anything she didn't want to do.

Despite this, the little angel was starting to become discouraged. She wanted to help Grace, but she couldn't' do that if Grace didn't trust her. If only there was a way for her to gain Grace's trust.

It was then that the idea came to her. She smiled from ear to ear before sharing her idea with Min.

The other girl smiled with approval before urging her best friend to give it a try.

Gloria took a deep breath before putting her plan into action. She sent a silent prayer of guidance up to God. She knew she needed His help to pull it off.

After Gloria was finished her prayer, she took the plunge. She glanced at Min who gave her a thumbs up sign. She smiled at her encouragingly, which helped her feel better.

Taking a deep breath, Gloria turned her attention to Grace. She waited until her other friend was done coloring in the whiskers for the cat before speaking.

Once Grace was done with her picture, Gloria asked her question. She prayed Grace would say yes.

"Grace, would you like to sleepover my house this weekend? We would have so much fun!" It was then that Gloria got another idea. She turned to Min and put it into action. "Would you like to sleepover too? That way Grace won't be so scared to be there. If we're all together, she'll feel better about coming."

Min frowned. That did sound like fun, but she had to go to her relative's house this weekend. They were leaving that Saturday morning.

"I want to," Min started, "but I can't. I'm sorry."

"Why not?" Gloria ventured.

"We're going to my Aunt Rebecca and Uncle Chris' house this weekend. We're leaving on Saturday." Then seeing the look of disappointment that crossed her best friend's face, Min tried to help her feel better. "But I'll bet I could come over for a little while this afternoon! My Daddy could pick me up before dinner. Would that be okay?"

Gloria grinned.

"Definitely!"

She gazed over at Grace just then. Her other friend didn't seem too excited about the idea.

"Don't worry, Grace." The little angel assured her. "You'll have fun. I promise. My family's really nice. You know my Mommy already. You know she's nice. Tess is nice too and so is Andrew."

"Is he the man who picked you up at my house?" Grace asked quietly.

Gloria nodded.

"Yup. That's Andrew."

Grace nodded. She considered this for a long time. She remembered how nice Andrew was to Gloria when he had come to get her. He wasn't mad or upset. He hugged her and assured her everything was going to be okay. He even brought her a plush animal to cuddle. Maybe, just maybe this would be okay.

Finally, near the end of free time, Grace told Gloria she would sleepover. She had to ask her mother first, but she was sure Catherine would say yes.

Gloria was so excited, she shrieked with happiness. Fortunately, Miss Melody was getting something out of the art closet, so she didn't hear her.

So far, this weekend was going to be great! Her two new best friends were coming over to play and one of them was sleeping over. She might just be able to finish this assignment after all. She only prayed Monica would say yes.

After free time was over, Miss Melody gathered the children around the circle for a talk and a story. SHE told them she had a surprising announcement to make. This got all the kids to move quickly.

Gloria took her usual place in the middle of Min and Grace. She had Min on her left and Grace on her right. She liked having Min and Grace as friends. They were both sweet and fun to be around.

Even though Grace was a little shy, she came up with good ideas for pretend games as did Min.

In Min's case, the child was outgoing, like Gloria herself and she also was protective of her and looked out for her in new situations. Gloria did the same for Grace, which meant their friendship was a circle so to speak.

Gloria liked the sound of that. A circle was never ending, just like God's love for them. This meant no matter what, Min and Grace would always be her friends and their friendship would last for a very long time.

Once all the children were settled, Miss Melody made her announcement.

"As you all know, we've been talking about swimming safety. Can anyone tell me a rule you must follow when you're in or around water?"

Min and Gloria raised their hands at almost the same time.

Min grinned and put her hand down. She wanted to give Gloria a chance to answer. That's what best friends did for one another.

Gloria gave her friend a smile before answering Miss Melody's question.

"Don't go near water like a pool or ocean without a grown up with you."

"That's right. Good girl, Gloria. That rule is very important. Does anyone know why it's important?"

Min raised her hand again.

Gloria stayed quiet this time. She wanted to give her a chance to answer, just like Min had done for her.

"Because you could get hurt." Min replied.

"That's right. That reminds me of another rule. Does anyone know what it is?"

Neither Gloria nor Min raised their hands this time. They both were looking Grace's way.

Apart from being her friends, they were trying to get her to speak up more. She had a bunch of great ideas and she was smart too. They knew she could do it if she was given the chance.

"Go on." Gloria whispered encouragingly. "You know this one. It's okay."

Min nodded. She went around Gloria's back to whisper something in Grace's ear as well.

Once Min was sitting down again, Grace raised her hand timidly.

The funny thing was, as much as Grace wanted to lower it, she felt the need to keep it raised. Whenever Min and especially Gloria gave her the confidence to do something, she felt like anything was possible.

Miss Melody smiled at Grace. She knew it took a lot for the little girl to speak up. SHE also knew that Gloria and Min had probably helped her be able to do it. Miss Melody was very proud of the girls for taking Grace under their wings.

The one thing Miss Melody tried to teach her students above all was friendship and how to be a good friend. And as far as she was concerned, Gloria and Min had learned well.

"Grace? Do you know the answer?" She asked.

Grace nodded. She took a deep breath and made sure Miss Melody could hear her.

"No running." Grace replied.

"That's right. Good job!" Their teacher praised.

Grace beamed. She had surprised herself. She threw Gloria and Min a small smile and they returned it with wide smiles of their own.

After they had named a few more rules, Miss Melody told them her announcement.

"Two weeks from now," she began, "we're going to visit the community center and take swimming lessons there."

Most of the children let out cheers and yays when Miss Melody was done with her announcement.

Everyone except for two people. Grace was one of them and another girl named Kathy. She didn't like water much as far as Gloria knew.

Miss Melody explained that all the kids had to do was get their parents or guardians to sign a permission form she would hand out. She then picked Gloria to hand them out.

Gloria did so without question. She enjoyed helping out.

After the permission slips were passed around, Miss Melody told the class to put them in their homework folders. After that was done, she allowed them to have free time for the last half an hour of school. They had gotten all their work done for the day after all.

The minute Monica showed up, Gloria ran to her, followed by Min and Grace. Min was running to catch up with Gloria. As for Grace, she was a little more cautious. She prayed her mother would be there to pick her up, not her father.

"Aw, hi little one!" Monica greeted her case worker. She hugged Gloria close as she picked her up. She gave her a kiss before setting her down.

"Hi Miss Monica!" Min greeted happily. "We had so much fun in school today!"

Gloria grinned in agreement.

"We sure did!" She affirmed. She looked at her mother with hopeful eyes just then. "Can Min and Grace come over to play, please? And can Grace sleepover until Sunday, please? Please?"

Monica laughed softly. She was glad Gloria was excited about school. She was especially happy that Gloria was having fun with her two new friends.

"Wow, slow down, sweetheart. First, yes, your friends may come over and play for a wee while. As for Grace sleeping over, we need to ask Catherine if it's okay. I'll do that as soon as she shows up. Meanwhile, I think there's someone you forgot to say hi to."

Gloria shrugged in confusion. It was then that she spotted Andrew walk into the room.

Smiling from ear to ear, Gloria ran to him, throwing her arms around his waist.

"Andrew! Andrew! Hi! Guess what? Min and Grace are coming over to play and Grace might sleepover! Monica said it was okay! Isn't that cool?"

Andrew chuckled as he picked the little girl up and gave her a hug. Gloria was certainly happy today.

"That is cool!" Andrew confirmed. "Would you like to introduce me to your friends?"

"Sure!" With that, Gloria led Andrew over to where Monica was standing. She was talking to Miss Melody about the swimming trip while Min and Grace played nearby.

When Min heard Gloria calling her name, she glanced up and nearly fainted. Coming towards her was none other than the angel who had taken her grandmother to Heaven nearly a year before. She knew he wasn't here for her because he wasn't glowing as he had done that day. But a part of her didn't think she would ever see him again. She wasn't afraid, just a little surprised.

Andrew winked at her when he caught the little girl staring at him in disbelief.

"Andrew, these are my two best friends! Min Burke and you know Grace already."

"I sure do." Andrew replied. He smiled at both girls as he got down on their level. "I also know this young lady as well."

Min offered the angel of death a small smile. She was still trying to piece it all together.

"Hello Min." He said gently. "It's nice to see you again."

Min just nodded. She was unable to speak at the moment. She was pulled out of her state of shock when the door swung open and Grace's father, Richard walked in. He didn't' look happy.

He walked straight over to Grace and grabbed her arm roughly.

"Come on. I need to get to a meeting and you're holding me up. Come on!"

Monica saw the fear flash across Grace's face and came to her rescue.

"Mr. Smith, why doesn't Grace come over my house and then you can pick her up later. Or better yet, why doesn't' she spend the whole weekend with us. We'd love to have her. That way you can get your work done and you won't have to worry about her."

Richard considered this for a minute before nodding his head. Having a free weekend to himself sounded good.

"All right. But you better take care of her." He threatened.

Monica ignored it as she put a comforting arm around the small girl's shaking shoulders.

"Don't worry. Your wee girl will be in very good hands with us."

Richard merely grunted as he turned and left the room. He had better things to do. At least the kid would be out of his hair for two whole days.

Grace wasn't even aware she had started to cry until she felt Monica pick her up and hug her close.

"Shh, it's okay now, sweetheart. You're safe, darlin'. You're safe. We're gonna have a good time this weekend. You'll see."

It took Grace a few minutes, but she finally calmed down.

As Gloria glanced up and saw Grace in Monica's arms, she smiled. She was glad her supervisor was able to help Grace feel better. She just prayed Grace had a good time this weekend.

After Monica helped Grace wash her face and the girls had taken a bathroom break, they were off.

When they got to the house, Tess greeted them all with a hug and a kiss in Gloria's case. She was glad her 'little angel was happy.

"Why don't we get you settled, sweetheart." Tess suggested, referring to Grace. "We'll get you settled nice in Gloria's room and then you girls can have a snack and play until dinnertime." With that, Tess led an uncertain Grace upstairs.

Once Grace was gone, Andrew ceased his chance. He found Min and Gloria in the living room, playing with Snickers.

They were throwing her mouse around for her to chase.

When Min saw Andrew, she gave him a smile and jumped up. She ran over and threw her arms around his waist.

Andrew hugged back, not sure why the child had done that. He didn't question it though.

"Thank you." Min replied in answer to his confused look. "Thank you for making my Grandma's trip to Heaven not so scary. And thank you for taking care of her."

"You're welcome, honey." Andrew said. HE could feel tears in his emerald eyes, but tried hard to fight them back.

A question came to Min's mind just then.

"Is Grandma happy now?" She asked curiously.

Andrew nodded.

"Absolutely, sweetheart."

Min grinned before running back to Gloria.

Tess returned a few minutes later with Grace. The child looked a little happier. She ran to join her friends and the elder angels could see a smile spread across her face when Gloria suggested they play Disney Princess tea party.

Monica had bought her a few princess dolls and she offered to share the Belle one with Grace. She would be Ariel and Min could be Cinderella.

After the game was over, Tess suggested something to Monica and the Irish angel agreed. She wasn't going to tell Gloria and Grace about it just yet though. SHE wanted to wait until Min left. She didn't want the other girl to feel left out.

After the girls' played Disney Princess Tea Party for a little over an hour, Monica put a video in for them to watch. IT was getting close to dinnertime and Min's Daddy would be here soon to pick her up.

Around five-thirty, the doorbell rang.

Monica answered it to find a man of around thirty or so standing there. HE had brown eyes and the same color hair as Min. He smiled in greeting and held out his hand.

"Hi. You must be Monica. I'm Matt Burke. I'm Min's father. We spoke earlier on the phone."

"Yes. Come in. The girls are just finishing up a movie. Min's a delight to have." She added truthfully. "She and my Gloria really get along well. They're good company for each other."

Matt nodded.

"I can tell. Min talks about Gloria non-stop ever since they met a few weeks ago."

Monica laughed softly.

"The same with my little one."

They had reached the living room by this point.

When Min saw her Daddy, she jumped from her chair and ran to give him a hug.

Grace watched this interaction the same way she had watched Andrew's interaction with Gloria the few times she had seen them together.

"Daddy!" Min shouted, excitedly. "I had so much fun! We played Disney Princess Tea Party and Miss Tess made us apples with peanut butter for a snack and…" Her voice trailed off as her Dad picked her up and swung her around before giving her a kiss.

"I'm glad you had fun, pumpkin. You can tell me more about it in the car. Right now, we need to get home and start packing for our trip to Aunt Rebecca's house." He turned his attention to Monica just then. "Thank you so much for having Min over on such short notice."

Monica smiled as she ruffled the child's hair.

"It's really no problem. The pleasure was all ours. She's a joy to have." She told Matt sincerely. "We would love to have her again. Maybe both girls could sleepover sometime."

Min then got a look in her eye that Gloria knew only too well. She exchanged a knowing glance with her best friend and nudged her gently.

"Daddy, Miss Monica, can Gloria sleepover my house sometime? Please? I could show her my room and the playroom and introduce her to our dog, Suki and our cat, Kiara. It would be so much fun! Please?"

Gloria gave Monica an equally hopeful look.

Both grown ups looked at one another before smiling.

"I don't see why not." Matt replied. "We need to make the arrangements, but it's possible."

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Both girls cheered in unison.

It was a good thing that Grace had chosen that moment to take a bathroom break.

"Thank you! Thank you!" They cried, hugging both of their parents in gratitude. "Thank you!"

"Aw, you're welcome." Monica replied. SHE hugged Gloria an then Min.

After Gloria and Min said their good byes, Matt and Min thanked Monica once more before leaving.

After Min was gone, Monica announced that dinner would be soon. She let the girls watch the rest of the movie until Tess called them for dinner.

"So what was all the happy squealing about?" Tess inquired as she stirred the spaghetti sauce for the pasta they would be having that night.

Monica grinned.

"Well Min's father and I are going to arrange for either Min to sleepover here or Gloria to sleepover at Min's house."

Tess smiled. She knew her 'little angel would like that.

"That sounds like fun. This assignment is going to take a little longer than previously thought to complete. That means Gloria might get her chance to sleepover at Min's."

It wasn't long before the table was set and the dinner was ready.

"I'll go get the girls." Monica offered.

"While you do that, I'll go see where my angel boy got off to."

Monica giggled softly. Tess was too much sometimes.

Stepping into the living room, Monica snuck up behind Gloria and covered her eyes.

"Guess who?" She said in a sing song voice.

"Monica! Monica!" Gloria squealed happily. She turned around and wrapped her arms around Monica's waist for a hug.

The Irish angel hugged back. She picked Gloria up and gave her a kiss.

Gloria kissed her back before squirming a little bit. She wanted to get down and watch the rest of the movie.

"Can we watch the rest of the movie now?" She asked. She had stopped squirming for the moment. "Please?" SHE added.

"You can watch it after you're done eating." Monica answered. "It's dinner time now. And after dinner, Tess and I have a surprise for you."

This distracted Gloria for a minute or so. She loved surprises!

"What is it?" Gloria asked. "Tell me! Tell me! Please!"

Monica shook her head.

"You'll just have to wait until after dinner. Now come on. It's time to eat. Tess made your favorite."

Gloria's eyes lit up at this. She got an idea just then.

"Can Grace and I finish the movie and then eat?"

"I'm afraid not, sweetheart. You need to eat first. Then after dinner's over you can watch the rest of it while Tess, Andrew and I clean up the kitchen."

Gloria frowned. She wanted to finish watching the movie now.

"Come on, darlin'," Monica said, referring to Grace. "It's time to eat."

Grace got up without a fuss. She knew she had to listen to Monica while she was here.

Once more, Monica was being very nice to her and Grace didn't want it to stop.

When they reached the kitchen, Monica set Gloria down in a chair and placed her plate down in front of her. She then helped Grace get settled and proceeded to get them both something to drink.

"What would you girls like?" She asked.

Grace wasn't used to someone asking her this besides her mother. She was used to drinking whatever her father gave her without question.

Seeing Grace's confusion, Gloria tried to help her. She had forgotten about the movie for the time being.

"We have apple juice, fruit punch, pineapple juice, milk, kool aid, and water. We have chocolate milk and strawberry milk too."

Tess smiled over at her little angel. She was proud of her for helping out.

Grace frowned. She didn't want Monica to go through any trouble for her, but that pineapple juice sounded good.

"May I have pineapple juice, please?" She asked softly.

"Aw, you certainly may." Monica told her. She turned to Gloria just then. "Little one, what would you like?"

Gloria thought for a minute.

"May I have apple juice, please?"

"Comin' right up." Monica replied.

This got Grace smiling a little bit.

Once Monica had gotten the girls' their drinks, they all held hands for the prayer.

Tess glanced over at Gloria and winked.

Gloria knew that meant it was her turn to say it. She also knew what she couldn't say. Therefore, she tried to choose her words very carefully.

"Father, thank you for this food. I also wanna thank you for Monica, Tess and Andrew and my friends, Min and Grace. Thank you for allowing Grace to sleepover. Please help me to help her. In your precious name, Amen."

After she was done speaking, the little girl glanced over at her superior to see if she had done it right.

To her relief, Tess was smiling.

Gloria glanced over at her supervisor to see a look of pride on her face as well. This made the little girl's heart soar.

It wasn't until halfway through the meal that disaster struck concerning Gloria.

She had finished everything on her plate except for her vegetables. She had grown to like carrots and corn, but she wasn't so sure about broccoli yet.

Unfortunately, broccoli was what Tess had chosen to cook for dinner that night.

Monica noticed her daughter's frown and braced herself for the protests that were sure to come.

It wasn't that Gloria was a difficult child, she was just a very stubborn and strong willed one.

"Monica, do I have to eat this?" She asked. She made sure her voice wasn't too whiny, but she wanted to get her point across nonetheless.

"I'm afraid so." Her supervisor replied. "I know you prefer carrots and corn, but broccoli is good for you too."

Gloria sighed. She wasn't going to give up that easily. She glanced at Tess, but her superior shook her head.

"I agree with Monica." She told her. "Besides, we're all eating it. Even Grace."

Gloria glanced at her friend who was indeed eating her vegetables without any problem.

Monica sighed. She was trying to figure out how to get Gloria to eat her vegetables without upsetting Grace.

"What if I put some cheese whiz on it?" She offered. She prayed Gloria would take her offer.

Gloria thought about this for a few minutes. She nodded finally and the Irish angel sighed with relief.

Once the cheese whiz had been put on the broccoli, Gloria ate it without a problem. She even seemed to like it.

Tess grinned over at her 'angel girl. She wanted her to know she had done well without drawing too much attention to her aloud.

Monica caught Tess's look and gave her a wink in return.

After dinner was done, Monica made sure to praise both girls on how well they had eaten.

As promised, she allowed the girls to watch the end of their movie before they left.

Once the kitchen was taken care of, Monica told the girls to get their jackets on. After that was done, she led them to Tess's car.

Once both little girls were buckled in, Tess put on a CD of Disney songs she had bought Gloria awhile ago. It had songs from various movies such as The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Tinkerbell and Aladdin. IT also had other songs from other Disney movies and shows on it as well.

The CD had twenty-eight tracks on it, so Tess was sure it would keep the girls occupied untill they got to where they were going.

She was right. The songs kept the girls busy. While Gloria sang on pitch and with joy, Tess noticed Grace softly singing along. She didn't seem to be enjoying herself.

Gloria noticed this as well. She got an idea and asked Tess to sing the next song with her.

Tess obliged happily. She loved singing with her 'little angel.

"Sure thing, sweetheart." With that, Tess and Gloria harmonized "Braver" together rather well.

Once they were done, Gloria asked Tess to pause the CD so they could sing their song. It was the one they had sung on top of Mount Nebo a few years ago.

Grace liked that song and said it was pretty.

After they were done, Tess put the CD back on and Gloria tried to get Grace to sing with her. She tried to show her how much fun it was.

Slowly but surely, Grace got the hang of it.

By the time they had pulled into the Disney Store parking lot, Grace was comfortably singing along with Gloria to "Fly to Your Heart." It was Gloria's favorite song from the new Tinkerbell movie.

"All right, we're here." Tess announced. She smiled at both girls as Monica helped them out of the car.

"Tess, may I unbuckle myself now?" Gloria asked before doing so. She knew Tess and Monica liked it when she asked just in case this wasn't their stop.

"Yes you may." Tess answered. "Thank you for asking before doing it."

"You're welcome." Gloria replied. With that, she unbuckled herself and Monica got her out.

Tess got Grace out and both girls took each grown up's hand.


	9. Chapter 9

DISCLAIMER: We DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 9

When they got inside, Grace's eyes went wide with wonder. She had never been in a store like this before.

Tess smiled at her excitement, but a part of her boiled with anger at how much this sweet child of God had been deprived of in her short life.

"Look!" Gloria cried happily. "Monica, look! They have the Tinkerbell doll!" With that, the little girl practically pulled the Irish angel over to a shelf.

A display of Tinkerbell dolls sat in a row upon it. They were all different sizes with different colored dresses on.

Gloria liked the blue and pink one the best. Tinkerbell's dress was pink with blue on the top. She came with a brush as well as one more outfit and a wand.

Monica could tell Gloria wanted it even though her daughter wasn't' saying anything. She never asked for much and she rarely asked for toys. It was books her 'little one usually asked for.

Tess was showing Grace the same display but one shelf down. Grace liked the Tinkerbell doll with the purple and green dress. It was the same doll that Gloria had spotted. The only difference was, the dress was a different color.

"Did you find something you like, little one?" Monica asked. She knew perfectly well Gloria had.

Gloria nodded.

Monica grinned. She knelt down to Gloria's level while picking up one of the boxes with the doll her daughter wanted in it.

"Would you like me to buy this for you?" She asked softly.

Gloria's eyes lit up.

"You would do that for me?" She asked.

Monica laughed softly.

"Of course I would. Besides, you ate your vegetables without too much trouble and you've been good for the past few days."

"Please, Monica?" Gloria asked.

"You got it, sweetheart."

Gloria grinned. SHE jumped up and down and cheered, trying her best to use her indoor voice. She hugged Monica around the waist and thanked her a million times before going to see what Grace and Tess were doing.

The little girl found her superior and friend at what the store called "The Plush Mountain." They were playing with a dalmatian and Lady from Lady and the Tramp. Gloria already had Lady, so it was fine.

"Would you like me to buy this for you, baby?" Tess asked, referring to Grace.

Grace's eyes widened in surprise. She had never gotten anything so nice before from anyone. Her mother bought her things sometimes, but her father would always throw them away if he could.

She frowned just then.

"My Daddy doesn't like me to have toys." She told the angel sadly.

"Don't worry about him." Tess assured her confidently. "I want to buy you something. If he has a problem, tell him to see me."

Grace nodded. She didn't know why, but she felt reassured by Tess's words.

"Would you like me to buy you Lady or Patch?" She asked.

Grace thought for a moment. She finally cautiously reached out for Patch and Tess handed him over.

"Thank you." Grace said softly.

"You're very welcome, baby." Tess replied. She then spotted Gloria over by a table of books.

"Don't worry, Tess. I see her." Monica assured her former supervisor.

"I wasn't worried." Tess replied. "I just wasn't sure what she was doing over there."

"Tess!" Monica admonished.

Tess shook her head before going over to see what Grace had found. The other little girl had found a bin full of magical wash cloths. When you put them in water, they grew into regular sized wash cloths.

As for Monica, she was still over with Gloria at the book counter. She was watching her read the beginning of a Tinkerbell Novelization. It was clear Gloria wanted it and the Irish angel knew you couldn't go wrong with a book.

"Would you like to buy that with the money Andrew gave you for helping him last week?" She asked.

Andrew had paid Gloria five dollars for helping him around the house a few days last week. She had been saving it for something special.

Gloria nodded. She dug in the pocket of her jumper and frowned. She had forgotten it on the dining room table.

Monica saw her charge's face and smiled gently.

"Here you go, little one. I picked it up for you on our way out."

"Thanks!" Gloria replied. She was all smiles once again.

After spending another fifteen to twenty minutes in the Disney Store, Tess declared it was time to leave.

She raised her eyebrows when she saw the book Gloria held close to her, but Monica explained she was buying it on her own.

The elder angel nodded in understanding when she saw Gloria lay down the five dollar bill Andrew had given her a few days ago. She was proud of her little angel.

When they returned to the house, Monica announced they could watch one movie before going to bed.

Gloria told Grace she could pick the movie since she was the guest.

Grace had a hard time choosing. Tess read her the titles and told her she could take her time.

After a few minutes, Grace selected "Tinkerbell" since she hadn't seen it yet.

Little did Monica know what problems it would cause later on.

After the Irish angel put the movie in, she opened Gloria's Tinkerbell doll at her little one's request for help.

Once that was done, she asked Grace if she wanted to open hers.

The child nodded.

"Please." She added softly.

"Okay. I think we can do that." With that, she opened Grace's as well.

Once that was done, Monica suggested they get into their pj's before the movie started.

Both girls did so without complaint.

After they were ready, Monica started the movie. SHE stayed with them for the first twenty minutes. After awhile, she told them she was going to talk to Tess in the music room and she would be back to check on them in a little bit. She forewarned them that they wouldn't be able to finish the movie that night. However, she did promise they could finish it the next day. After all, Grace was staying until Sunday.

"They seem to be having a good time." Monica reported as she sat down next to Tess.

"Yeah. It's a shame how much that baby's gone through." She said, referring to Grace. "When I saw her face once we got into the store, it hit me how much she missed out on. It's not surprising though. A lot of kids who are abused miss out on the simple joys of being a kid."

Monica nodded. She snuggled into Tess as her former supervisor pulled her close.

"It was nice what you did for Gloria in the car." She said.

Tess grinned.

"You know I love making a joyful noise unto the Father. I also love singing with our little Gloria no matter how old she is. I love her, Ms. Wings. Just like I love you."

"I know." The Irish angel assured her. "I know you do. But I Think it's taken Gloria till now to realize it."

The two angels talked for another thirty minutes before Monica realized what time it was.

"I better go tuck the girls in for bed." She said. "I'll be right back."

Tess nodded.

"Okay. I'll be there to give Gloria a kiss good night and sing to both of them in a few minutes."

When Monica reached the room, both girls were still awake. They were happily watching the movie, their Tinkerbell dolls held tightly in their arms.

"All right, girls," Monica said as she stepped into the room, "it's time for bed. You can finish the movie tomorrow."

Gloria shook her head. She gave her supervisor a hopeful look.

"Monica, can't we finish it now? It's almost done. Please?"

Monica shook her head. She had to be firm on this. She couldn't let Gloria determine the rules.

"I'm afraid not, my love. You two can finish it tomorrow right after breakfast. I promise."

"Why can't we finish it now?" Gloria demanded. Her tone had become whiny which was a flashing red light that she was tired

"I'm sorry, Gloria. The answer is no. I told you before you started watching it that you wouldn't be able to finish it tonight. I promise, you can finish it in the morning."

"I wanna finish it now!" Gloria whined.

"I know you do, but you need your sleep." Monica gently explained.

"But I'm not tired!" Gloria insisted. Her voice was close to tears and Monica could tell. "We wanna watch the end of the movie!"

Grace shook her head. She didn't want any part of this.

Monica knew Grace wasn't in on this, so she gave her a gentle smile before turning her attention back to her daughter.

"Gloria, I'm sorry, but you can't. You can watch it tomorrow." The Irish angel tried again. With that, she turned the DVD player and TV off.

That did it. Gloria burst into tears and let out a wail that could have been heard in the next county.

Knowing Gloria was just tired, Monica knelt down beside her and tried to pull her close for a cuddle. She knew it would help her fall asleep.

But as she went to do so, Gloria did something she had never done before in her whole existence as an angel. SHE pushed her supervisor away.

Monica tried again, but got the same result.

"Okay." Monica said patiently. "If you don't want me to hold you, that's fine. But you need to lay down. It's time to go to sleep. Tess will be in to sing to you in a few minutes."

"I don't care!" Gloria cried. "I wanna watch "Tinkerbell"!"

"I told you, you can watch the rest in the morning." Monica assured her. "It's time to go to bed now. Come on and lay down for me."

Gloria just continued to cry and refused Monica's attempts to cuddle her.

She was just tired, disappointed and frustrated all at once and she didn't know how to express it in words. If she were her normal self, she wouldn't have had a problem. But unfortunately, that wasn't the case.

"Gloria…" Monica said, warningly. "You need to lay down now. Please lay down for me."

"No!" Gloria cried yet again. "Leave me alone!"

Monica was shocked. Gloria had never told her to do that before. She also had never talked back to her. What was going on?

Just then, Tess appeared in the doorway.

The moment Gloria saw Tess, she jumped up and ran to her superior. She was still crying as she wrapped her arms around the elder angel's waist.

"Aw, what's the matter with my little angel, huh?" Tess asked. She picked Gloria up and hugged her close.

Gloria tried to explain, but she was too upset and broke down in tears halfway through it.

Finally, she just buried her face in Tess's shoulder and continued to sob.

Tess just held her and started swaying back and forth. She didn't know what had gotten Gloria so upset, but she wanted to find out.

The only word Tess understood out of Gloria's explanation was Tinkerbell.

Thinking something in the movie had scared her, she turned to Monica for the explanation.

"It wasn't the movie." She assured her former supervisor. "The movie wasn't scary."

"Then what's gotten our little Gloria so upset!" Tess asked. SHE practically had to yell to be heard over Gloria's wails.

Monica sighed.

"Gloria wanted to watch the rest of the movie, but I told her she had to wait until tomorrow. That's why she's not too happy with me right now."

Tess nodded. She understood now.

"Gloria, baby, you can watch it tomorrow." Tess assured her. "Monica's not lying to you. You and Grace can watch it first thing after breakfast."

"I wanna watch it now!" Gloria cried. It was the first coherent sentence she had uttered since she had run to Tess for help.

"I know, baby. But you need your sleep." With that, Tess began to help Gloria the best way she could. SHE started singing to her while stroking her hair.

Gloria was still crying, but not as hard as she had been earlier.

Grace, Meanwhile had slipped out of the room. SHE had been frightened by Gloria's outburst and had tried to find a safe place to hide.

Andrew, who had been watching a program in the living room, found her underneath the dining room table. Her Tinkerbell doll was clutched firmly in her arms.

When Grace realized her hiding place had been discovered, she tried to shrink back to protect herself.

Sensing her fear, Andrew knelt down to her level so he wouldn't scare her further.

"Hey, what are you doing under here?" He asked kindly.

"Gloria scared me!" Grace confided in him. "She's too loud!"

Andrew nodded. He had stayed out of it because he knew Monica and Tess could handle Gloria on their own.

"Gloria will be okay." Andrew assured the scared child. "I promise."

Grace nodded, although a part of her wasn't so sure.

"They won't hurt her, will they?" SHE asked uncertainly.

Andrew's heart broke at that point. He saw all the fear Grace was feeling reflected in her brown eyes.

"Oh no. Of course not. Monica and Tess would NEVER hurt Gloria like that. She might be put on time out tonight, but that is the worst that will happen."

"You pa-promise?" She asked.

"I promise." Andrew replied. "Now, what do you say. Why don't we get you back to bed." With that, he picked the little girl up and carried her back to Gloria's room.

Upon arriving, he found Gloria fast asleep in Tess's arms. Tinkerbell was securely in her arms.

"I found a stowaway outside." Andrew reported jokingly. He handed Grace off to Monica as he winked at her. "I thought you might want her back."

Monica smiled at her long time friend as she hugged Grace close.

"Grace. Where were you?" She asked gently. "What happened, sweetheart?"

Andrew answered the question for her.

"I think she got scared when Gloria had her little tantrum."

Monica nodded.

"Everythin's okay now." She assured the little girl. "Gloria's fast asleep. She was just tired. She'll be okay tomorrow."

"I thought you were gonna hit her!" Grace confided in Monica.

The Irish angel fought back tears as she tucked Grace in bed.

"No. Never. Grace, listen to me, sweetheart. We would never hurt Gloria or you. We don't hit in this family." She assured her.

"Monica's right." Tess chimed in. "Not all families are like that, baby."

Grace nodded. She was crying openly now. Her face was buried in Monica's shoulder, soaking the Irish angel's shirt.

Monica didn't mind though. All she wanted was for Grace to feel better.

Twenty minutes later, both little girls were tucked in and the elder angels left the room so they could get some rest. Little did they know how short it would be…

Somewhere around three-thirty in the morning, Gloria awoke to the sound of Grace crying.

Wanting to help her, she got out of bed and went over to her friend's cot.

"Grace? Grace, wake up." Gloria coaxed. "It's okay. You're having a bad dream. It's only a dream. Wake up."

As Grace's cries became louder, she started to thrash. As she did so, she went to push Gloria away and ended up hitting her in the face by accident.

Gloria's lower lip started to quiver and she burst into tears.

Instead of staying there, she jumped up and ran to get help. But before she reached the hallway, Monica appeared. She frowned when she saw Gloria and the state she was in.

"Gloria, what's the matter? What are you doin' awake, sweetheart?" It was then that the Irish angel saw her daughter's right cheek. "How did you get hurt?"

As Gloria felt her mother pick her up, she let out a sob of relief before answering her question.

"Grace had a bad dream! I tried to help her, but she hit me!" She sobbed.

"Okay. It's gonna be okay. I'm gonna try and help her." With that, Monica carried Gloria back to her room.

Upon arriving, Monica set Gloria down and went over to Grace.

The child was awake by now. Her cheeks were streaked with tears with more to come. She also felt wet as Monica picked her up.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Grace cried, thinking she was in trouble. "I'm sorry! Don't hurt me! Please don't hurt me!"

Gloria couldn't take the scared tone in her friend's voice any longer. She wanted to help, but she didn't know what she could do.

At this point, Gloria wanted nothing more than to be herself again. She wanted to be her old self so she could help Grace, but she knew that wasn't possible.

The other thing she wanted more than anything else was to go home.

It was then that something Tess had told her came back to the youngest angel.

"Whenever you're scared and you think God has left you, go to the highest and quietest place and God will be there waiting for you. He'll always find His children when they need Him most."

Gloria needed God more than ever right now.

Letting a quiet sob escape her lips, Gloria picked Tinkerbell up and quietly left the room.

Monica, meanwhile had gotten Grace into a bath and was now finding her a fresh pair of pj's. She had assured the child she wasn't in trouble and Grace was slowly calming down.

"There you go." Monica said as she tucked Grace back in. "All clean again. Would you like me to stay here with you until you fall asleep?"

"Please?" Grace asked softly.

"Okay." With that, Monica sat down next to the little girl's cot. She started stroking her hair to keep her calm.

It wasn't until Grace was half asleep did the Irish angel notice someone was missing.

Just then, Tess poked her head into the room. She frowned when she saw Grace whimpering and Monica holding her.

"Angel girl, what happened?" SHE asked. She glanced at Gloria's bed and saw that it was empty. "And where's our little Gloria?"

Monica frowned. SHE explained what had happened with Grace.

Once she was done, Tess also assured the scared little girl that she wasn't in trouble.

"And Gloria?" Tess asked expectantly.

"I don't' know." Monica admitted. "I didn't even know she had left."

Tess nodded. She sighed as she tried to think of all the possible places the little angel could be.

It was then that the elder angel realized something.

"Was Gloria afraid when you found her?" Tess inquired.

"Aye. Very much so." She replied. "Why?"

Tess shook her head.

"I know where she is. I'll be right back. Give me twenty minutes alone with her."

"Tess, go easy on her." Monica pleaded.

Tess gave her 'angel girl a reassuring look. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes at Monica's comment.

The reason was, she knew the Irish angel was protective of their little Gloria. But sometimes, the elder angel thought she went a little too far.

"I intend to." Her former supervisor assured her. With that, she was gone.

Gloria, meanwhile had made her way to the highest and quietest place she knew. She knew she wasn't allowed up in the attic without Monica or Tess, but this was an emergency.

As Gloria sat there, she let the tears fall as her small prayer emerged from the depths of her heart and soul.

"Father, I'm really scared! I wanna help Grace, but I don't know how. I don't like being this small anymore! Please, just let me come home! I wanna come home! Please! I'm so scared! Please help me!" With that, the tears continued to fall.

"He knows that, little angel." A familiar voice assured her from the doorway. "He knows."

Gloria glanced up to see her superior standing there. She gave her a fearful look, but Tess shook her head.

"It's all right, baby. You're not in trouble." With that, Tess stepped further into the room. She came over to Gloria and took the small child into her arms. She was glowing by this point, the light of God's love shining around her.

The minute Gloria felt Tess secure her in a hug, the little angel started feeling better. She wasn't shaking as badly and her tears were lessening.

"I'm sorry, Tess! I know you said not to come up here alone, but I…I had to…you said when I'm scared, God would find me so I…" Her voice trailed off as a sob escaped her lips.

"It's okay, Gloria. It is. I understand why you came up here. I'm glad you listened to me." The elder angel told her. SHE fought the urge to add, "for once" and just continued to soothe her distraught little angel.

"I wanna help Grace, but I don't know how!" Gloria tearfully confessed. "I just wanna be myself again!"

"I know you do, little angel. God knows that too. That's why He sent me to find you. He knew I would be able to help you."

"I want Monica!" Gloria cried suddenly.

Tess took it in stride.

"I know you do. But God knew better. He knew you wanted Monica, but He also knew you needed me." She explained.

"He did?" Gloria asked.

Tess nodded.

"Yup. He also knew you needed to feel His presence right now. That's why He sent me to assure you that He's always there. He hasn't left you, sweetheart."

Gloria hiccupped as she tried to calm down.

"Thatta girl. Do you feel any better?" The elder angel asked.

"A little." Gloria admitted. "Now that you're here."

Tess grinned despite the situation. She loved this little angel she was holding more than anything.

"I love you, little angel. I love you so much." Tess told her.

"I love you too." Gloria replied. SHE was calming down and it looked like she was off to dreamland.

As the superior angel gazed down at her angel baby, she noticed her right cheek was starting to bruise. She debated whether to wake Gloria up to tend to it, but thought better of it. They could fix it in the morning.

Tess started humming "When You Can't Move the Mountain." She knew it would help Gloria fall asleep easier.

Ten minutes later, Monica appeared. SHE looked worried.

"Tess, you found her!" She whispered loudly. She was relieved that her 'little one was safe and in one piece.

"I did, angel girl. Our little Gloria's gonna be fine. She just needed a little cuddle time with me and a reminder of God's love. She was scared, Ms. Wings. She was also a little home sick."

"Poor Gloria." Monica whispered.

"She'll be okay. I think I got through to her."

Monica sighed with relief.

"Thank the Father." She praised.

"Amen to that, Ms. Wings." Tess agreed. "Amen to that." With that, she and Monica tucked Gloria in and made sure she was going to be okay before leaving the room.


	10. Chapter 10

DISCLAIMER: We DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 10

The rest of Grace's time at the angels' house went better than the first night had. She had a lot of fun with Gloria and Tess taught her how to play some songs on the piano.

When Grace's mother came to pick her up on Sunday, her daughter was all smiles. This was a rare treat to see and Catherine was grateful to God that her daughter was happy.

"I can't thank you enough." SHE said to Monica as she held Grace close. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you and Tess were the angels I've been praying for."

Monica just smiled and told Catherine it was their pleasure.

After Gloria and Grace hugged good bye, she and her mother left. Little did Catherine know just how right she was.

After they were gone, Monica turned her attention to Gloria. Her little one was looking pretty bored.

"What do you say about going to the park?" She suggested.

Gloria's brown eyes lit up at the mention of the word.

"Will you push me on the swings, please?"

"Sure. I'll even swing with you for a little bit."

Gloria grinned.

"Yes! Yes! Can we have a picnic lunch there too?"

"I don't see why not."

Gloria's grin grew wider by the minute.

Monica smiled as well. She loved seeing her daughter happy.

"Well someone looks happy!" Tess observed as she came into the room. "What's gotten you so excited, little angel?"

"Monica said we could go to the park and have a picnic! She's gonna push me on the swings! Wanna come, Tes?"

Tess grinned.

"I wouldn't miss it for the world." Tess replied. With that, she let Gloria help her get the lunch ready. They invited Andrew to join them, but he had gotten an assignment from the Father, so he had to decline. But he promised a slightly disappointed Gloria that he would join them for ice cream when they were finished.

Monica suggested that Gloria call Grace and Min to see if they wanted to come.

When Gloria called Catherine's cell phone, she asked if Grace could come to the park. Catherine told her that they wouldn't be able to make it today.

As for Min, she hadn't gotten back from her aunt's house yet.

Despite this, Gloria was still excited about going.

So far this was turning out to be a good day for the angels. Little did they know how short it would last…

Monica, Tess, and Gloria arrived at the park a little after twelve p.m. that day. Gloria was wearing jean overalls with a green shirt underneath and green sandals. Her brown hair was pulled up high in a ponytail so it wouldn't get in her way when she played at the park.

Monica and Tess walked over to a nearby shady area underneath a tree and set down all the picnic things.

Gloria was getting antsy.

"Can we go swing now? Please?" Gloria asked as she tugged on Monica's arm.

Monica smiled and turned to look at Gloria.

"Yes, we can go swing now, but just for a bit because then we need to eat lunch." She explained to her young

charge.

Gloria nodded her head and the two of them waved goodbye to Tess and headed off together towards the swings.

When Gloria got closer to the swings she picked up speed and ran off to it with Monica trailing behind. Monica smiled as she watched Gloria climb onto a swing. Gloria looked over at Monica and waited for her to come over to push her.

The Irish angel joined her a few moments later and began to push her little one on the swing.

"This is so much fun!" Gloria exclaimed as she swung back and forth.

Monica smiled and replied, "I'm glad you're having fun sweetheart."

" I wish Grace and Min would have been able to come." Gloria said to her supervisor after a few moments.

"I know love, but next time they should be able to come." Monica replied encouragingly. She continued to push her for a few more minutes until she saw Tess setting up their lunch on the picnic table underneath the tree.

"All right, my wee one, it's lunch time." Monica told her daughter as she let the swing come to a stop.

Gloria looked up at Monica with a sad face.

"Can't we swing for a little more?" She asked hopefully.

Monica shook her head.

"Tess is settin' up lunch and we don't want to keep her waiting now do we?" She asked.

Gloria sighed sadly and reluctantly got off the swing. "I guess not." She answered softly.

Monica smiled and wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into her side as they started walking off towards the picnic bench.

"We can swing after lunch." Monica reminded the little girl.

Monica and Gloria approached the table a few moments later and Monica helped Gloria get situated on one side of the bench.

Once she was situated Monica slide in beside her and sat down. They were both sitting across from Tess. Tess had set up each plate with a turkey sandwich, potato chips, and fruit salad.

Tess handed Monica some hand sanitizer which she squeezed out on her hands and then squeezed out a little on Gloria's hands.

"Rub your hands together sweetheart."

Monica instructed her.

Gloria nodded her head and did as instructed. Once they had finished that, the angels held hands and began to say the blessing over the food. Once the blessing was said, the angels began to eat their lunch.

Gloria happily began eating her turkey sandwich. She hadn't realized how hungry she was until she had started to eat. However, she was also in a hurry because she wanted to continue playing.

Monica noticed and gently chided her.

"Gloria, the swings aren't going anywhere. Take your time eating sweetheart."

Gloria sighed. She nodded her head and proceeded to chew a little slower and pick up her food at a slower rate.

The Irish angel and Tess made small talk about their

assignments and kept their eyes on Gloria.

Fifteen minutes later lunch had come to an end and Gloria was ready to go play again.

"Come on Monica!" She exclaimed as she slid off the bench and waited impatiently for her supervisor to come as well.

"Gloria, you need to be patient, little one. I need to help Tess clean up the mess." She explained softly as she looked over at her.

Gloria sighed and folded her arms across her chest. Monica continued her task of cleaning up their mess with Tess.

Just as she finished and turned to Gloria they heard a deep voice address them.

"Tess, Monica, Gloria." Sam greeted the three angels.

All three angels looked up from what they were doing. Gloria took Monica's hand and hid halfway behind her supervisor for protection.

"I just came by to give you an update from the Father in regards to this assignment. He is very pleased with the way things are going." Sam explained to Tess and Monica.

Both older angels listened intently. However, Gloria was more interested in going to the swing set. She began to tug on Monica's hand and tried to pull her towards the swing set.

Monica looked down at Gloria and shook her head indicating for her to stop. She then looked back up Sam and listened as he explained that an event was going to happen that was going to lead to them revealing themselves to Grace's family.

Gloria frowned and tugged on Monica's hand again to get her attention. The one thing she disliked more than anything was being ignored. When she was her normal self Monica wouldn't think twice about answering her question, but now that she was little she felt like Monica kept her waiting more. Gloria

didn't like not feeling like herself and she didn't like that she felt so frustrated with herself and the people around her.

Gloria didn't feel close to God anymore and she just wanted to be back to her old self.

After a few more minutes of tugging Gloria finally took in a deep breath and began to cry. She let go of Monica and plopped down on the ground beside Monica's feet and cried out of frustration of being ignored. She buried her face in her hands as more tears streamed down her face.

Monica, Tess, and Sam all looked at her in surprise. Luckily, Sam was just finishing with his information and left a few moments later.

"Little one, what's the matter?" Monica asked as she knelt down on the ground in front of her daughter.

Gloria didn't answer as she rubbed her eyes.

"Gloria, I can't help you unless you use your words and tell me what's wrong." Monica reminded her.

Gloria shook her head and continued to cry.

Monica sighed and looked up at Tess.

"Gloria and I will be back. I'm going to take her somewhere to remind her of who she is." Monica explained softly as she reached down and picked up her charge who thankfully didn't resist being picked up.

Tess nodded. She only prayed her 'angel girl would be able to get through to their little Gloria.

A few moments later they disappeared and reappeared on Monica's mountain.

This was the mountain that Monica had chosen to return back to God when she was tempted by Satan. This is the same mountain that she brought Gloria to when she needed to speak to her about an assignment. This mountain held a lot of meaning to her and she hoped she could remind Gloria.

Monica gently pulled back from Gloria and settled her so she was sitting comfortably on her lap.

The Irish angel gently rubbed her back as Gloria sniffled and wiped at her eyes.

"Do you recognize this place?" Monica asked softly.

Gloria looked around at the bare ground, at the shrubs growing alongside the mountain, at the blue sky and white clouds. She then looked back at Monica's face and shook her head.

"No, I don't remember." She answered tearfully.

"That's all right, sweetheart. You don't need to remember." Monica replied. "This is my special spot. I come here when I need to think and when I need to b reminded of God's love for me. I brought you here so you could be reminded of God's love and of my love for you." Monica explained.

Gloria nodded her head and leaned forward so she was resting her head on Monica's chest.

"Can you tell me what happened earlier that made you upset?" Monica asked softly.

Gloria thought for a few moments before answering.

"You weren't listening to me again. I was trying to get your attention and you weren't listening." Gloria answered softly and tearfully.

"I'm sorry sweetheart, but I was talking to Sam and he had a message for me from God." Monica answered. "It had to do with our assignment."

Gloria nodded her head to show her supervisor she understood.

"I know, but Monica, how come you don't listen to me as much as you did before?" She asked.

Monica furrowed her eyebrows and looked down at Gloria's face.

"What do you mean, little one?"

"When I was my old self you would answer me right away when I needed you, and now that I'm like this, you don't answer me as fast." Gloria explained.

Monica sighed and silently asked God how she could answer this question.

"Well, honey, I don't mean to do that. I understand that you wanted my attention, but it's impolite to interrupt and I needed to finish talking to Sam." Monica explained. "I don't mean to come across as ignoring you my love because I would never purposely ignore you."

Gloria nodded her head again.

"I know, sometimes I just feel like you ignore me on purpose."

Monica shook her head and hugged her wee one close to her.

"No. I could never ignore you on purpose. I love you too much to do that." Monica answered her.

Gloria hugged Monica back and tightly.

"I love you too Monica." She whispered.

The two of them enjoyed the view from the mountain and their time together for a few more minutes before going back to Tess.

When they returned back to Tess, Monica allowed Gloria to run off to the swings so she could talk to Tess.

Gloria didn't object since that's what she wanted

to do anyway, so she ran off leaving Monica and Tess.

Tess looked over at Monica and asked, "What happened? One minute she was fine and the next she wasn't."

Monica sighed and answered, "She was upset because she felt I was ignoring her and she feels like I have been ignorin' her more so now that she is just a wee one."

Tess nodded her head in understanding.

"Where did you take her?"

"I took her to my mountain." Monica answered. "And I talked to her about how I was talkin' to Sam and I wasn't purposely ignoring her."

"From the looks of it she seems to be fine now." Tess observed.

Monica nodded her head.

"Yes, she's fine now."

Tess smiled and wrapped an arm around Monica's shoulders. They hugged and watched Gloria play on the swings.

The rest of the afternoon was fine at the park and the angels all were thankful for the time they could spend together.

The following Saturday morning Gloria sat up in bed and whimpered. She didn't feel well. Her throat hurt a bit and her nose was a bit stuffed up. She didn't feel like moving from her bed, but she really wanted to see Monica so she reluctantly scooched herself out of her bed and slowly walked out of her room.

When she got there, she expected to see her there. However, the door was open, the bed was empty and had already been made.

Gloria frowned and sighed. She looked at the stairs and knew she had to go down them, but she was just so tired.

Fortunately, Andrew came down the hallway at that moment.

"Good morning Gloria." Andrew greeted his young friend.

Gloria looked up at him with a less than happy face and rubbed at her eyes.

"Morning Andrew. Do you know where Monica is?"

Andrew shook his head and knelt down in front of her.

"Are you feeling all right, sweetheart?"

Gloria's eyes filled with tears as she shook her head.

"My throat hurts and I can't breathe through my nose." She answered tearfully.

Andrew frowned and embraced the young angel and stood up with her in his arms.

"Let's go find you Monica and some medicine."

Gloria nodded her head as she laid it down to rest on Andrew's shoulder.

Andrew rubbed her back to comfort her. He walked down the stairs and into the kitchen where he found Tess making breakfast.

"Morning Tess, do you know where Monica is?" Andrew asked as he walked over to his supervisor.

Tess turned around. She frowned when she saw Gloria not looking very well.

"What's the matter, Gloria?" Tess asked her little angel.

Gloria frowned.

"My throat hurts and my nose is stuffed up! Where's Monica?" She asked tearfully.

"Monica had to go out on assignment. She'll be back later." Tess explained. "Let me find you some medicine, little angel."

Gloria made a noise of being displeased because Monica wasn't there.

"I want Monica, Andrew." Gloria told her friend softly as she laid her head back down on Andrew's shoulder.

"I know you do honey, but she'll be back later this afternoon. How about we get you comfortable on the couch and put on "The Little Mermaid"?" Andrew suggested.

Gloria thought for a moment before nodding her head. "Okay." She answered softly.

Andrew smiled and carried her into the living room.

Once there, the angel of death set her down on the couch and laid a blanket down on top of her.

After that was done, he searched through the movies

and found "The Little Mermaid" and put it into the DVD player.

Tess returned a few moments later with Children's Tylenol. She walked over to Gloria and poured out a teaspoon of it into her favorite Ariel spoon.

"All right little angel, I found some medicine." Tess said as Gloria sat up and looked at it suspiciously.

"It doesn't look like it's going to taste good." Gloria replied as she frowned at Tess.

"It's grape flavored baby. It'll taste good and it'll help you feel better." Tess explained trying to encourage her to drink the small teaspoon cup.

Gloria sighed as she reached for it and gulped down in one shot.

"Good girl." Tess praised her.

"Thanks." She whispered as she got comfortable again and began watching her Disney movie.

Tess went back into the kitchen to finish breakfast and Andrew sat down on the couch with his newspaper and a cup of coffee.

About thirty minutes later Tess approached her little angel with a tray that had her breakfast on it.

A blueberry muffin, a side of fruit and a glass of

apple juice.

Gloria looked at it and frowned.

"I'm not hungry." She said firmly as she looked at the television.

"You need to eat baby. It'll help you get your strength up." Tess gently explained.

Gloria shook her head.

"Monica wouldn't make me eat it." She told Tess.

"I believe she would make you eat a little bit of it." Tess countered. "I want you to try and eat some of it."

Gloria sighed and frowned at Tess as she sat up and Tess placed the tray on her lap. She reluctantly began eating her breakfast. She ate half of her muffin and a few pieces of fruit and drank half of her apple juice.

Gloria looked over at Andrew.

"I'm full Andrew." She told her angel friend softly.

Andrew gave her a smile and walked over to her and took the tray off her lap.

"You ate plenty. I'm proud of you."

Gloria nodded her head and turned back to the movie.

About halfway through the movie Tess came back into the living room.

"Baby, why don't we go give you a bath? I think it'll help you feel better." Tess suggested.

Gloria shook her head never taking her eyes off of "The Little Mermaid".

"No thank you. I'm clean." She answered.

Andrew bit back a laugh as he stood up to leave the room. He didn't want to be any part of this.

"Little angel, I really think it'll help you feel better. It'll be warm water and it'll relax you." Tess said.

"Monica wouldn't make me take a bath right now." Gloria threw at her superior as she looked up at her. "I don't want to take a bath. I want to finish my movie."

"After your movie, you're going to take a bath and you can get into comfy clothes and come right back to this couch, but you're going to take a bath. End of discussion." Tess said firmly.

Gloria frowned and humphed as she folded her arms across her chest and turned back to her movie.

Sure enough, after the movie was over Tess came back into the living room and shut off the TV.

"All right, little angel let's go. It's bath time."

Gloria slid off the couch and slowly headed up the stairs to her bathroom. Tess followed behind. Gloria went into the bathroom and Tess followed in. She had already gotten Gloria a new nightgown—Ariel of course—to change into after her bath.

Gloria watched as Tess turned on the water for the bath. She tested the water and allowed the bath to fill up with warm water.

Tess instructed Gloria to get undressed so they could finish the bath sooner rather than later. She could tell by the mood her 'little angel was in, it was going to be a long day…


	11. Chapter 11

DISCLAIMER: We DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 11

About twenty minutes later Gloria was bathed and in her new nightgown and Tess was drying her hair with a towel in her bedroom.

"How about a French braid?" Tess suggested.

"I'd like that." She answered.

Tess smiled and began French braiding her hair.

However, part way through, Gloria frowned when she saw it in the mirror.

"That's not how Monica braids my hair."

Tess rolled her eyes and sighed.

"I know it isn't sweetheart, but I'm not Monica." She explained to her little angel.

Gloria frowned as Tess continued the braid.

"Can I call Monica?" She asked hopefully. "Please?"

Tess shook her head.

"I'm afraid not, little angel. She is working with Catherine right now."

The little girl sighed and folded her arms across her chest.

"When is she gonna be home? I want to see her!" She exclaimed.

"Little angel, you watch your attitude." Tess scolded wee Gloria. "And indoor voice in the house. You know that. As for Monica, she'll be home when she gets home, probably within a few hours."

Gloria didn't say anything, but continued to frown. Once Tess was done with her braid she led Gloria back down the stairs and helped her lie down on the couch. This time Tess put in Beauty and the Beast.

However, a half hour into the movie Gloria was fast asleep on the couch. Tess and Andrew both hoped for their sanity that Monica would be back when Gloria woke up because if she wasn't they could just see Gloria's attitude getting worse.

Sure enough, when Gloria woke up two hours later, she was even crankier than before. One, because her throat hurt again, and two because when she looked around her beloved supervisor was not around.

Gloria sniffled as the tears started to come. She let out a small whimper, but it was enough to bring Tess in the room.

"What's the matter, little angel?" Tess asked as she tried

to hold Gloria.

Gloria however, would have none of that and pushed Tess away.

"I want Monica and she's not here and my throat still hurts!" She exclaimed.

"All right sweetheart, I'll get you more medicine and I'm sure Monica will be back soon." Tess explained as she sent a silent prayer up to God that she would be home soon.

Tess left the living room and went back to the bathroom to get more medicine. She once again handed the medicine to Gloria and she took it thankfully without complaint. Tess started Beauty and the Beast again and Gloria sniffled as she settled back on the couch.

"Are you hungry for lunch sweetheart?" Tess asked her little angel softly.

"No! When Monica comes home I'll eat lunch." Gloria countered.

Tess sighed.

"How about something small?" Tess asked.

Gloria shook her head firmly. "No thank you." She told Tess firmly.

Tess had learned that she needed to learn how to pick and chose her battles and this is not one she wanted to have so she decided to leave her alone.

A few moments later they both looked up when the front door opened and Monica walked in with her cell phone to her ear and her purse on her shoulder.

Gloria shot up on the couch and slid off. She ran to Monica and tried to get her to pick her up.

Monica put her arm around Gloria's shoulders and pulled

her to her side, but Gloria wanted to be picked up. She whimpered and tried to get into her arms.

"Monica! Cuddle!" She demanded.

Monica put her hand on the receiver of the phone and looked down at her wee one.

"Sweetheart, I missed you too and we will have cuddle time soon. I promise. But I need to finish this conversation and then we'll cuddle. I promise." She tried to explain to Gloria.

Gloria could feel the tears welling up and didn't bother to hold them back. Monica had promised she wouldn't ignore her, but she was doing it again.

"I want to be with you! I don't want Tess or Andrew! I want you!"

Monica sighed and looked to Tess for help.

Tess shrugged before trying her hand at it. She walked over to the two angels and held her hand out to Gloria.

"Come on little angel. Let's finish Beauty and the Beast

and Monica will be off the phone sooner than you think." Tess tried to encourage the little girl.

Gloria shook her head firmly and stomped her foot.

"No!" She exclaimed. "I want Monica!"

Monica sighed and began talking in her phone again and tried to hurry the conversation along because Gloria was about to have a meltdown.

Gloria tried to wait as much as she could and thankfully Monica hung up the phone a few moments later.

"Hi little one." Monica greeted Gloria with a short hug. "We can cuddle in just a few moments. Let me run to the bathroom and change my clothes to something comfy and we'll finish your movie." She explained.

Gloria frowned.

"But you said after you got off the phone we could cuddle." She said tearfully as she stomped her foot.

"Sweetheart, it'll only take me ten minutes and then I'll be right down." Monica tried to explain as she looked down at her little one.

"No! It's not fair! You're ignoring me again!" She exclaimed.

Before Monica could defend herself, Gloria took a deep breath and shouted, "No! I don't like this! I don't like being small! And you promised you wouldn't ignore me and you broke your promise! I hate you!"

Monica's mouth dropped open as she looked down at Gloria in shock.

Once she regained her voice she replied, "Well, I love you enough for the both of us. Now, go to your room please."

Gloria stomped her foot and screamed again, "I hate you!" With that, she ran up the stairs and slammed the door behind her.

Once there, Gloria flopped down on her bed in tears. she didn't understand why this was happening. All she wanted was to spend time with Monica. Why couldn't her supervisor and best friend understand that?

Snickers jumped on the bed just then. She purred and rubbed up against Gloria's arm. She could tell something was wrong.

Petting the cat behind the ears, Gloria started telling her the whole story.

Meanwhile back downstairs, Tess had her hands full with her former case worker.

Monica was on the verge of tears and Tess knew this wasn't going to be easy to sort out.

"Angel girl, come here." The superior angel said. She held her arms out to Monica and the Irish angel wasted no time in letting the elder angel hold her.

"Tess, what happened?" Monica asked tearfully. "What's happened to our Gloria? She would never have said that to me if she was her normal self. What's goin' on with my little one? I feel like I'm losing her!"

"Oh no, no, angel girl. You're not losing Gloria. I promise you that. And you're right. Gloria wouldn't have said that to you if she was her normal self. But that's just it, honey. She isn't her normal self right now. She's confused, afraid and frustrated. And she's feeling abandoned. It's hard for her to understand the things she used to now that she's little. But I know one thing that hasn't changed."

"What's that?" The Irish angel asked softly.

"How much she loves you."

Monica shook her head as more tears came.

"I'm not so sure about that anymore, Tess."

"Aw, baby, Gloria loves you. She does. She didn't mean to hurt you on purpose. It's gonna be okay." Tess assured her. "Gloria will say she's sorry soon."

Monica nodded as the tears continued to fall. She wasn't worried about Gloria apologizing. She knew her little one would say she was sorry. The only question was how long would it take?

The Irish angel also knew the answer to that question as well. She knew it was going to take the Father's time.

"I just want my little one back!" Monica cried desperately.

"I know you do, angel girl. I know. And so does the Father. He'll help us through this. By the grace of God, we will get through this."

A few minutes of silence passed before Tess broke it.

""After I help you, I'm gonna go talk to her." Tess told her former case worker.

"Don't be too hard on her." Monica pleaded. She knew Tess had a tendency to lose her patience with the youngest member of their family.

Tess shook her head.

"I wasn't even thinking of doing that." She assured her. "But I do plan to get through to her." With that, she hugged Monica close and stayed with her until she was okay.

Once the elder angel was sure Monica would be okay, she went upstairs to talk to Gloria. She prayed she would be able to get through to her. She also prayed her 'little angel wouldn't cause her to pull her hair out by the time they were done talking.

Shaking her head, Tess knocked on the door.

"Go away!" Gloria's tearful voice demanded.

Tess smiled to herself. She knew as a child, Gloria couldn't' sense who was there as well as she would have if she were her normal self.

"Little angel, it's me." She told her. "May I come in, please?"

Gloria thought for a moment before giving Tess permission.

Once Tess was in the room, she closed the door and sat down on the edge of Gloria's bed.

Instead of lecturing Gloria on how she had hurt Monica's feelings and how what she had said was wrong, she tried another tactic with her.

"So I hear you and Monica had a little disagreement, huh?"

Gloria nodded. She gave Tess a look before replying to her statement.

"More like a dinosaur sized one. And it's all Monica's fault!"

Tess let this go. She could tell Gloria was still really upset.

"Why don't you get your coat on. I'm gonna take you somewhere special."

The little girl gave Tess a confused look, but she obeyed without question. She didn't know why she did so, but she did.

Once they were in the car, Tess put on another fave CD of Gloria's. It was a CD of worship songs Gloria liked. It was actually one of Kassie's old CD's, but the little angel loved it all the same. Her favorite songs on it were "The Joy Joy Joy Down in My Heart" and "Deep and Wide." She also liked "Clean Hands" and "Blessed Be Your Name" as well as "This is the Day the Lord Hath Made" and "He Knows My Name."

They drove for a good twenty minutes before Tess stopped the car. She stopped the CD and went around to get Gloria out.

Once they were on solid ground, Tess took Gloria's hand and led her over to a set of cherry blossom bushes that had just started to grow again.

As she gazed around, a small smile spread across her face. This place was pretty.

Tess could tell Gloria was taken in by their surroundings. But rather than elaborate on the beauty of them, Tess decided to tell her story. She wanted to get Gloria home by dinnertime and she also wanted to give the child time to ask any questions she had.

And Tess knew with Gloria, that could take hours.

Sitting down beneath one of the blossoms, Tess motioned for Gloria to join her.

The child did so, snuggling into her superior for a cuddle.

Smiling gently down at Gloria, the elder angel pulled her close. She loved this little girl more than anything and she was determined to help her.

"Do you remember this place, little angel?" Tess asked. She really didn't think Gloria would remember it, but she wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt anyway.

The little girl shook her head.

"It's pretty." She commented.

Tess grinned.

"You're right. It is. But that's not why I brought you here."

"It isn't?" Gloria asked.

Tess shook her head.

"No. I wanna tell you a story. It's a true one about you."

Gloria was intrigued now.

Once Tess was sure she had her 'little angel's full attention, she started her tale.

"You were born here." She began.

As she expected, Gloria posed a question just then.

"Were you there?"

Tess shook her head.

"No. But do you know who was?"

Gloria shrugged.

"No."

"Monica."

Gloria's eyes widened.

"Really?" She asked. Despite the fact that she was still mad at Monica, she was becoming interested in the story Tess was telling her.

"Yes. She was the first angel you met. That's why you two are so close now. She loves you so much, sweetheart. She really does. She never meant to hurt you."

Gloria sat there quietly for a long time, trying to take in all of what Tess had told her.

"It doesn't seem like it anymore." She said softly.

Tess shook her head as she pulled Gloria close.

"Oh baby, you have no idea how much Monica loves you. She would do anything for you, just as I would. I know it doesn't seem like it now, but she loves you."

Gloria nodded. She rested in Tess's lap for a little over a half an hour just thinking.

By the time they returned home, Gloria had fallen asleep.

Tess didn't have the heart to wake her. She handed her over to Monica the second she closed the door.

The Irish angel gave her former supervisor a hopeful look.

Tess shook her head.

"I got her thinking at least." She told her 'angel girl. "I think you two will be okay soon."

Monica nodded. She gave Tess a grateful look before heading for the stairs.

Laying Gloria down, she changed her 'little one into her pj's before making sure she had Tinkerbell. After that was done, the Irish angel tucked the covers around her and planted a kiss on her cheek.

"I love you, little one. I love you so much. I'm so sorry for hurting you. I really am. I pray you can forgive me soon." With that, Monica sat there and watched Gloria sleep for a little bit before leaving to join Tess for a cup of tea. She really missed spending time with her former supervisor.


	12. Chapter 12

DISCLAIMER: We DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 12

The morning of the swimming trip dawned bright and sunny. It was also warm. But little did Gloria know what kind of day she was in for. She was still not talking to Monica due to the fact that she was still upset with her.

She had thought about everything Tess had told her, but she still wasn't ready to forgive her yet. She did still love her, but she was still upset with her.

As Gloria opened her brown eyes, she smiled. She knew what today was and she was excited to get it started. She loved the water and she couldn't wait to take lessons with Min and Grace.

She had Monica sign her permission slip the night Miss Melody had given them out, so she was good there. She and Min had been the first to hand theirs in.

Still grinning, Gloria sat up. However, the grin didn't last for long.

Whack!

Gloria put a hand to the back of her head as pain seared through it. She tried to bite the tears back, but it wasn't easy. She had really hit her head hard.

Just then, Tess came into the room. She was smiling until she saw Gloria's face.

"Gloria, what's wrong, baby?"

Gloria had never been so happy to see her superior in her whole existence.

"I sat up and I hit my head!" Gloria replied, tearfully. "Tess, it hurts!"

Tess frowned. She could tell the morning was not going to be a good one.

"Aw, let me see what I can do to make it better. Come here, sweetheart."

Gloria obliged and snuggled into Tess. She let Tess inspect her injury.

After the superior angel concluded the little girl wasn't bleeding, she told her she would give her some medicine for the pain after she ate breakfast.

Gloria agreed and tried to look forward to the swimming adventure.

After cuddling with Tess for a few minutes, Gloria started getting ready.

"Okay, honey, what would you like to wear?" Tess asked as she opened Gloria's closet.

Gloria thought for a minute. Her face brightened as she answered her superior's question.

"I wanna wear my blue shirt with my Ariel jumpsuit and my blue and pink sandals. Please? It'll match my Ariel bathing suit!"

Tess nodded. She started searching through Gloria's dresser. She frowned after a few minutes.

"Sweetheart, you're gonna have to pick another outfit."

"Why?" Gloria asked.

"Well, you wore that outfit two days ago and it's not clean yet. I'm sorry. You can wear the shirt, but you need to pick a different pair of pants or a different jumpsuit. You have a blue one that'll go with the shirt you want to wear."

Gloria frowned, but nodded at Tess's suggestion. She had really wanted to wear her Ariel one.

After Gloria was ready, she let Tess brush and braid her hair.

Since Gloria was going to be swimming, she couldn't have her hair down.

After that was done, Tess made sure Gloria had her backpack before heading downstairs.

When they entered the kitchen, Gloria ran to Andrew and gave him a hug good morning.

The angel of death hugged back and ruffled Gloria's hair.

Upon setting her down, he raised his eyebrow in Monica's direction and gazed back at Gloria.

Gloria shrugged before going over to Tess. She was at the pantry getting something out.

"May I have Berry Berry Kix, please?" SHE asked politely.

"Now how can I deny a request like that?" Tess asked, making Gloria giggle. With that, she reached into the cabinet, only to find the box almost empty. There wasn't even enough for Gloria to have one more bowl.

When the little girl saw her superior's frown, she got an anxious look on her face.

"What is it?" She asked.

Tess sighed.

"I'm sorry, little angel, but there isn't anymore. You can have Rice Krispies, Honey Comb or Peaches and Cream oatmeal though."

Gloria sighed in frustration before choosing Peaches and Cream oatmeal. That was her favorite flavor.

"Can I help you make it?" Gloria asked.

"Sure thing, sweetheart. Why don't you wash your hands and we can get started."

"Yes! Yes!" Gloria cheered. She made sure to use her indoor voice.

This brought a smile to Tess's face.

Once the oatmeal was done, Gloria went to get herself something to drink, but she couldn't reach the cups. SHE wanted her Tinkerbell cup. The only problem was, the cup was a shelf up from the one Gloria was able to reach.

As she tried to grab it again, she heard a familiar Irish lilt address her from behind.

"Would you like some help, little one?" Monica asked. She was trying to treat Gloria as normally as possible, praying it would help them make up.

"No." She said in a less than friendly tone.

"Excuse me, little angel?" Tess asked. If there was one thing she didn't tolerate, it was bad manners. "What did you just say?"

Gloria sighed.

"I mean no thank you." She muttered, barely loud enough for Monica to hear her.

Tess let it go for now. She knew Gloria was having a bad morning, but she was going to talk to her after school about it.

Breakfast went by as smoothly as possible. The only thing that happened was Snickers trying to partake in the meal. This didn't bother Gloria as much as it did Tess.

Once Gloria had finished eating, she grabbed her back pack and followed Tess out of the house.

"Gloria, wait!" Monica called, realizing her daughter had left something behind.

But Gloria didn't wait. She didn't even as much as look back when she heard Monica call her name.

After they got in the car, Tess put on a CD for Gloria and they were off.

Halfway to school, Tess realized her other baby needed gas.

Pulling over into a Mobile station, Tess got out and filled the car up.

As it was filling up, her cell phone rang.

"Hello?" She asked.

"Hi." Came Monica's gentle Irish lilt. "I just wanted to see how Gloria's doing. I know she didn't have such a good morning."

Tess eyed Gloria who was reading "Karen's Black Cat" content as ever.

"She's doing all right. She's reading and listening to a CD. We've just stopped to get my baby some gas."

Monica giggled when Tess said that.

Just then, Gloria leaned over to where Tess was and held her hand up as though she wanted her attention.

"Excuse me, Tess?"

Tess grinned at Gloria's nice words. She also was happy her little angel had remembered to use her indoor voice.

"Hold on one minute, angel girl." Tess told her. She put her hand over the receiver before turning her attention to Gloria. "Yes, little angel?"

"I'm hungry"! Gloria announced.

"You are, huh? Well, let's see what we can do about that." With that, Tess bent down and rummaged through a bag. She closed the bag and went for another. It was then that she realized what she wanted to give Gloria was up front.

Gloria gave Tess a look she knew only too well.

"I'll give you some Goldfish in a minute." Tess told her. With that, she got out of the car to pay the gas bill.

Gloria nodded. She went back to reading her book while holding her left hand out towards the open door. She figured Tess would give them to her once she was done with the gas thing.

"She'll be fine." Tess assured her 'angel girl.. "You'll see. When you come to get her after school, she'll be all smiles again." Little did Tess know how wrong she was.

"I hope you're right, Tess." Monica replied.

"You know I am, angel girl." With that, she went around to close the back door.

Seeing Tess coming back, Gloria put her hand out. She had heard Tess coming back and was waiting for her to give her the Goldfish.

But instead of Tess's hand coming to meet hers and dropping a package of Goldfish in it, Gloria felt a searing pain go through it as the door came in contact with it instead.

The shock over what had just happened wore off quickly and before Gloria knew it, she had burst into tears and let out a sob of pain.

It was enough to get Tess's attention.

The elder angel gasped in realization. She told Monica she had to go and rushed to Gloria's side.

When she reached her 'little angel, Gloria was sobbing openly. Her left hand was swelling fast and it looked really painful.

"Gloria, I'm so sorry!" Tess apologized sincerely. "I didn't know you had your hand there. I'm so sorry, baby. Come on, let's get you taken care of." With that, Tess pulled Gloria out of her car seat and set her in her lap. She hugged her before putting a hand through her hair. "Shh, it's okay, sweetheart. You're all right now. It's okay…"

Gloria continued to cry while Tess got the first aid kit out.

After she applied some ice to Gloria's left hand, she rummaged in the kit for a band-aid.

"There you go, sweetheart. You're being so brave. Monica's going to be so proud of you when I tell her. Now, what kind of band-aid would you like?"

Gloria pointed to the Ttinkerbell box just as another sob escaped her lips.

"Pa-please?" She asked in between a sniffle.

"Aw, sure thing, little angel. Here you go." With that, Tess placed a Tinkerbell band-aid on the finger that had the bruise on it. She knew Gloria's left hand would be sore for awhile. She gave her the children's Tylenol she had forgotten to give her after breakfast and prayed it would help her feel better. She also sung "When You Can't Move the Mountain" to her a few times. This successfully helped her to calm down.

Once Tess dropped Gloria off at school, she explained to Miss Melody what had happened.

Miss Melody assured Tess she would take care of Gloria and watch her throughout the day. She also promised that if there were any significant problems, she would call Monica or herself right away.

"All right, little angel. I'm gonna go. I love you, baby. Have a good day, okay?"

Gloria nodded. She gave Tess a hug and kiss before pulling away.

But instead of going to find Min, she sat at her desk and read the last bit of "Karen's Black Cat." She didn't' even bother to put her stuff away just yet.

The little girl was so engrossed in her book and the bad morning she had experienced, she didn't even notice Miss Melody had put her favorite CD on.

Min came in a few minutes later. She put her stuff away before kissing her father good bye and running straight over to Gloria.

"Hi Gloria! Guess what?"

Gloria glanced up and gave her best friend a small smile. She wasn't feeling much like smiling at the moment, but she owed it to Min.

"What?" She asked. She was only half interested.

Min caught on immediately.

Frowning, she sat down beside Gloria and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Gloria, is something wrong?" She asked in concern.

Gloria nodded. She was about to tell Min everything that had happened, when two things happened at once.

First, Catherine dropped Grace off and then Miss Melody said it was circle time.

Gloria sat in her usual spot, but she didn't' talk much. Min sat next to her on her left and Grace sat on her right. Even the shier girl noticed her usual talkative friend was quieter than usual.

Apart of Grace wanted to ask Gloria what was wrong, but she didn't' want to pry.

Besides, Miss Melody had started circle time, so she would have to wait.

"Okay, class. As you know, we're going to the pool later this afternoon. Now, I want each of you to remember the safety rules we've been talking about as well as the regular rules of behavior we practice here in school. Also, I'm going to assign you partners and you must stay with them at all times." With that, she handed Min a basket and told her to pick a name out of it. She explained that whoever the person got would be their partner for the day.

Min picked a name out and handed the basket to Gloria.

Gloria did the same and grinned. She had gotten Min. She glanced over at her friend and gave her a smile.

Min did the same.

At least one thing was going right today.' Gloria thought.

Grace got a girl named Sara as a partner. Sara was sweet and Grace was relieved that she got her instead of someone else like Rachel Myers.

Miss Melody assured Grace she could play with Min and Gloria when she was in the pool. This got Grace smiling again.

After the partners were picked, Miss Melody asked Gloria to take attendance.

Gloria did so without complaint. She enjoyed helping people and taking attendance was one of her favorite jobs.

She crossed herself off first, then Min and Grace.

Once that was done, she did the other kids. She always did this since Min and Grace were her best friends.

After attendance was taken, Gloria gave the book back to Miss Melody and she set it aside.

The morning seemed to fly by and before Gloria knew it, she was sitting in her usual reading corner with her friends. She was reading "Karen's Easter Parade" while Min and Grace were each reading different books.

Min had bought her own copy of the Tinkerbell Novelization and was looking at a funny set of pictures while Grace was reading "Ariel's Mistake." It was a book in the TLM mini series that was really good.

Gloria's favorite was "Ariel the Spy" but she liked the book she was reading as well.

Ten minutes before the end of reading time, Miss melody announced that the children could talk quietly amongst themselves.

Gloria marked her place at chapter 14 and put her book away.

Min seized her chance the minute she saw her friend wasn't doing anything.

"Gloria, why were you so sad this morning?" She asked. "You didn't answer any of the questions Miss Melody asked. Did something happen at home?"

Gloria sighed. She knew it was now or never. She also knew this was a good opportunity to show Grace that telling friends things wasn't scary.

"I had a bad morning." She told them truthfully.

"What happened that made the morning bad?" Min ventured.

"Well, I hit my head when I woke up this morning and then there wasn't any Berry Berry Kix left and then I got hurt on the way to school." Gloria explained. She showed her friends her bandaged hand.

"Ooh, what happened?" Grace asked timidly. "Did someone hurt you?"

Gloria had to be careful how she answered that question. She didn't want Grace getting the wrong idea.

"Yes, but it was an accident. I was in the car and Tess accidentally closed the door on my hand. She didn't see it was there. She wouldn't hurt me on purpose."

Grace nodded. She didn't know why, but she believed Gloria.

Min nodded.

"My Daddy did that to me by accident once too. I was getting something out of the pantry and he didn't see my hand."

Gloria nodded.

"Did Tess kiss it better afterwards?" Grace asked. She was truly interested in Gloria's story now.

Gloria nodded.

"Uh-huh. She gave me a hug and she sung to me too."

"My Mommy does that for me every time I'm hurt or sick." Min chimed in.

Grace nodded.

"My Mama does that too." She told her friends.

Min changed the subject just then.

"When I'm upset and wanna be alone, I go to my room. That's my special place. There's a special smaller room connected to it where I write in my diary or pray and just think when I need time alone. How about you guys?"

Grace didn't have an answer for them. She didn't' have a special place.

Gloria did though.

"Monica took me to a special place once." She told her friends. She realized as the words left her mouth that this had been the first time she had spoken positively about her supervisor since yesterday.

"Where is it?" Min asked curiously.

Gloria closed her eyes as she started to describe the mountain to her two best friends. The picture was so vivid in her mind's eye, she could see it as though she were there.

"There's flowers around it and it's really big. It's built over a desert and above it is the sky. It's really pretty."

"Does Monica take you there a lot?" Min wanted to know.

Gloria shook her head.

"No. She only takes me if I'm upset and I need to remember she loves me and God loves me."

Min nodded.

"It sounds really pretty."

"Does God answer prayers?" Grace asked. She had been listening to the two girls talk and she was anxious to know the answer.

"Of course He does!" Gloria replied confidently. "He answers them all the time."

Min nodded.

"Gloria's right. God answers our prayers all the time. He might take a long time to answer them, but He hears us and answers them."

Grace nodded. She had an uncertain look in her eye and Gloria caught it right away.

But before she could ask what was wrong, Miss Melody announced it was lunchtime. After lunch they would head over to the community center.

After they got back, they would have snack time and art class before going home.

As Gloria put her book away, she rummaged in her bag for her lunch.

But to her surprise and dismay, it wasn't there.

Trying to fight back tears, Gloria put her book bag back in her cubby and took her seat next to Min and across from Grace.

The minute she sat down, Min knew something was wrong.

"Gloria, where's your lunch?" She asked.

Gloria shook her head.

"I forgot it at home."

"Do you want some of my carrot sticks?" She offered. "My Mommy gives me a lot and she always packs an extra ranch dressing too." With that, she split the food between the two of them.

Miss Melody chose that moment to check on them. She frowned when she saw Gloria didn't have anything to eat. Her frown turned into a slight smile upon seeing Min sharing with her.

"Min, that's very nice of you." She left them just then and returned with a school lunch for the little girl.

She set it down in front of Gloria and patted her shoulder.

Gloria smiled at her and thanked her for her help.

"You're very welcome, sweetheart. We always keep an extra in case a student needs it." With that, she left to check on another table.

"Would you like a cookie, Gloria?" Grace offered. She held out one of her chocolate chip cookies to her friend. "Mama always packs me three just in case I wanna share with a friend." She handed one to Min as well.

"Thanks, Grace." Gloria replied. She was starting to feel better. Having her friends there and knowing they were willing to help made her feel a little bit better.

But as lunch went on, the little girl found herself missing her supervisor. She wanted Monica with her so badly. She was truly sorry for what she had said to her and she prayed Monica would forgive her.

After lunch was over, Miss Melody told the class to get their things together and make their way to the front of the room. She also reminded them to stand next to their partners.

Min took Gloria's right hand and the two smiled at one another.

Grace and Sara were in back of them.

All four girls started talking quietly amongst one another until Miss Melody started explaining the last minute rules.

"When we get on the bus, we need to use our indoor voices and be good, okay?"

"Yes Miss Melody!" Chorused the class as a whole.

While on the bus, Gloria and Min played hand clapping games quietly as well as talked to Grace and Sara. They also played the memory game and Gloria taught them a few songs Tess had taught her. She found herself having fun for the first time all day.

Little did she know her bad day wasn't over yet…


	13. Chapter 13

DISCLAIMER: We DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 13

When they arrived at the community center, Gloria got a pleasant surprise.

As they walked into the pool area, Gloria spotted someone she knew very well. She winked at Rafael, who gave her a smile back. He had been told of their assignment and he was prepared for seeing his friend in a different form.

"Hola mi amigas." He said, smiling around at them. "Hi! My name is Rafael. I'm the guy you come to if you have any questions while you're here. We're gonna go over a few safety rules and then we can start the fun!"

Miss Melody's class erupted in cheers and "yays" at the conclusion of Rafael's statement.

Once the Hispanic angel had reviewed the rules with the fourteen six to seven year olds, he blew his whistle, signaling it was okay to get in the pool.

Gloria and her friends had a great time swimming and doing tricks in the water.

Gloria realized she and Min had the same bathing suit as well. The only difference was Gloria's was blue while Min's was pink.

Grace's bathing suit had cats on it and it was yellow.

When it was time to go, Gloria gave Rafael a hug and the two talked for a few minutes while the others got ready.

Min and Grace were curious as to how Gloria knew him and she told them he was her friend. This wasn't a lie, so it was okay.

When Gloria and her class returned to their classroom, Miss Melody said it was art time and then snack.

As the girls got to work on a special project they were going to give a member of their family, Gloria knew exactly what she was going to do. She had been thinking about it all day. She was going to make a card for Monica. She wanted to show her how sorry she was and she knew how much her mother loved her artwork.

As they worked, the girls talked with one another. Their conversation varied from favorite books they had read to fave TV Shows and music.

Before Gloria knew it, she was putting her card for Monica aside and getting ready to eat snack.

As Miss Melody passed out snacks, she let Min help her pass out juice cups to everyone.

Once everyone was served, Miss Melody led them in a prayer of thanks before letting them dig in.

It wasn't until halfway through snack time that disaster struck.

Gloria had just reached to get a napkin when it happened. She reached too far to her right, causing her juice cup to tip over. It wouldn't have been so bad if Monica's card hadn't been close to it.

The little girl watched in horror as her creation was ruined in two seconds flat.

Min and Grace tried to help Gloria salvage it with paper towels, but the damage had already been done.

The little angel couldn't help it. Tears welled up in her eyes and started streaming down her face. She hated crying in front of her friends, but the day had been so awful and now Monica's card was ruined.

"It'll be okay." Min assured her. She gave Gloria a much needed hug while Grace patted her shoulder.

Just then, Miss Melody came over to get their trash from snack.

When she saw Gloria crying, she knelt down in front of her. She knew the child wasn't having a good day, so she was extra gentle with her.

"Gloria, what's the matter, sweetheart?" Her teacher asked.

Gloria explained to Miss Melody about Monica's card.

The young woman listened carefully before suggesting Gloria make another one. SHE said she had enough time before afternoon recess.

Gloria agreed and got to work. She finished her snack before working on another card.

After she was done, she put the second card in her book bag, that way it would stay safe.

A half an hour before parents were due to pick them up, Miss Melody allowed her students to play outside. She figured since they hadn't had a proper recess that day, they deserved a treat.

Grace was leader this time and she did her job pretty well.

Once the kids were outside, Min, Gloria and Grace headed for something they called the castle. It was a drawl bridge with playground equipment on either side of it.

"Do you wanna play Disney Princesses?" Min suggested.

"Sure!" Gloria agreed.

Grace agreed after a minute and soon all three girls were playing happily.

Twenty five minutes later, Miss Melody blew the whistle to let her students know it was time to go inside.

Unfortunately, Gloria was just getting ready to jump off what she thought was the second step at that moment. The sound of the whistle startled her, causing her to fall three steps down to the ground below.

"Gloria!" Min and Grace shouted in unison. They ran to their friend and helped her up.

Gloria was crying once again from pain. Her right knee was scraped up pretty badly.

"I'll get Miss Melody!" Min offered. With that, she ran off to get their teacher.

Miss Melody came a few minutes later. She helped Gloria into the classroom and bandaged her up.

She advised that Gloria take it easy until Monica came for her.

The little girl agreed and her friends stuck by her.

Min offered to get her things from her cubby and Gloria graciously accepted her offer.

Once Min returned, she sat down next to Gloria and tried to engage her in a light hearted conversation.

It worked a little bit, but Gloria really wasn't in the mood to talk at the moment.

Fortunately, Miss Melody announced it was clean up time just then. She allowed Gloria to stay sitting while the others cleaned up.

It was only then that Min noticed something.

"Gloria, where are your glasses?" She asked. She knew her friend had put them down before they had left for the pool because she wouldn't need them.

Min had guided her around while at the community center so she didn't have a problem there.

But ever since they had gotten back to the classroom, neither girl had seen their friend where her glasses.

Gloria gasped when she realized they weren't in her book bag or in her swim bag. Her glasses were gone!

"Don't worry," Grace said, surprising herself. "We'll help you look for them."

"Grace is right." Min told her. "We'll help you find them."

Gloria nodded. She just prayed that Tess wasn't the one to pick her up. She prayed harder than she had ever prayed in her whole existence as an angel.

Gloria's prayers were answered ten minutes later when the classroom door opened and Monica walked in. She smiled when she saw her 'little one surrounded by Min and Grace. Her smile quickly turned into a frown when she noticed her daughter's expression.

Before Monica could go over to her or ask any questions, she saw Min whisper something in Gloria's ear before jumping up and racing towards her.

"Hi there, sweetheart!" Monica greeted the little girl. "How are you, huh? Did you have fun at the pool?"

Min nodded. She returned Monica's hug, but then got back on track.

"We had fun. But we need your help. Gloria's sad. She's been sad all day. She hurt herself at recess. Can you help her feel better, Miss Monica? Please?"

Monica smiled despite the situation. Min was so sweet.

"I'll try my best." She told her. "Can you take me over to her?"

"Sure." With that, Min lead the Irish angel to where Gloria and Grace were sitting. The two were talking quietly.

"Gloria?" Monica said softly. She knelt down in front of her charge and put a gentle hand underneath her chin. She could see the tears glistening off her eye lashes and it broke her heart to see her Gloria-her little one like this.

But as Gloria gazed up to meet her supervisor's kind brown eyes, Monica noticed something was missing right away.

"Little one, where are your glasses?"

That did it.

The dam that Gloria had worked so hard to fight back burst forth. She launched herself at her supervisor, affectively wetting Monica's waist and upper part of the flowered shirt she was wearing.

"I'm sorry!" Gloria cried the minute she felt Monica wrap her in a hug and pick her up. "I'm sorry, Monica! I didn't…I didn't mean what I said! I don't hate you! I don't hate you! I love you! I-I'm sorry!"

"Shh, it's okay, little one. It's okay. I'm right here. I have you now. I forgive you, sweetheart. I know you didn't mean what you said. I know. Shh…" With that, the Irish angel picked her daughter up and started stroking her hair.

Grace watched this interaction with a feeling of confusion in her heart. She knew Gloria's family was different from hers, but she wondered why her own mother was the only one who ever comforted her like that?

Just then, Miss Melody came over to Monica and Gloria. She filled the Irish angel in on what had gone on that day and Monica nodded to show she was listening.

"Min and Grace looked everywhere for Gloria's glasses, but they couldn't find them."

"Please don't be mad!" Gloria begged, burying her face in her supervisor's shoulder.

"It's okay, little one. Shh…I'm not mad, darlin'. I'm not. I promise." Monica assured her distraught little one.

"But Ta-Tess will…" Gloria's voice trailed off as she started coughing.

"Shh, it's okay, Gloria. It's all right. That's my girl. You're okay." She continued to soothe the little girl until she started calming down.

Once Gloria was calm, the Irish angel turned her attention to Miss Melody.

"Gloria will be okay." She assured the young woman. "She's just had a hard day."

Miss Melody nodded.

"I know. Min and Grace have really been a big help to her today."

"I'm sure they have." Monica agreed.

Just then, Grace came back to them with a grin on her face. She was carrying something carefully in her hands.

"I found them!" She announced happily.

Gloria dared to glance to where Grace's voice was coming from.

Sure enough, her glasses were in her friend's hands.

"Where did you find them, Grace?" Monica asked, taking Gloria's glasses from the little girl.

"In the pretend center." She replied. "Maybe someone put them there when we were cleaning up."

Miss Melody nodded. She then remembered Gloria had put them down near Snowball's cage before they had left for the pool

"There you go, darlin'." The Irish angel said. She handed Gloria her glasses back and watched as she put them on. "Aw, thatta girl. Do you feel better now?"

Gloria nodded. It was true she felt a little bit better, but she was still hurting from her fall. All she wanted to do was sleep.

"Thank you, Grace." Monica said, giving her a smile. "You were a big help today."

Grace beamed for the first time ever.

"You're welcome." She said, turning to Gloria.

"Thanks." Gloria replied before laying her head against her mother's shoulder.

Just then, the door opened and Catherine came in. She tried to smile for Grace's sake, but Monica could tell something was very wrong. She wanted to stay and talk to her, but she had to get Gloria home.

She promised Catherine she would call her that night before letting Gloria say good bye to Min and Grace. After they had gathered Gloria's things, they headed home.

When Gloria and Monica returned home, she told her she could bring the lunch she had forgotten that day to school tomorrow. She also explained that this week would be her last week there.

Gloria frowned at this, but she was also anxious to be her normal self again.

As she snuggled into Monica for a cuddle a little while before dinner, the Irish angel decided it was time to have a talk with her wee one.

"Gloria, we need to talk." She started. "First, I'm really sorry you had such a bad day today. I'm also sorry I made you upset yesterday. I didn't mean to. But when you said you hated me, you hurt my feelings."

The little girl sighed. She knew her supervisor was right.

"I know. I'm sorry, Monica. I didn't mean to make you sad. I love you. I missed you today!" She confessed tearfully. "All I wanted was to be with you."

"Aw, I missed you too, sweetheart." She assured her daughter. "I missed you so much."

Just then, Tess walked in. She smiled at the sight she found.

"Well this is a pretty picture." She commented. "Did you two make up?"

Monica nodded and grinned down at Gloria.

"I'm glad." The elder angel replied. She gave Gloria a kiss while ruffling her hair before going to make dinner. She was making something really special for Gloria. SHE wanted to do something to help her feel better.

After Tess was gone, Gloria sniffled before telling Monica about the good parts of her day.

"Min and Grace shared their lunch with me." She told her mother.

"They did?" Monica said. "That was nice of them. What else good happened today?"

Gloria told her all about the fun she and her friends had had at the pool.

"And guess who I saw there?" Gloria asked excitedly.

"Who?" The Irish angel inquired.

"Rafael!"

"You did, huh?" She asked knowingly. She had known Rafael was going to be there all along.

"Yup."

Monica grinned. She was happy Gloria was feeling better.

For the rest of the hour before Tess called them for dinner, the two angels hung out. They read a few stories and played a few games of memory together.

Gloria was happy to spend time with her supervisor again. She loved Monica so much and she really did view the Irish angel as her mother.

"I taught Grace how to pray today." She chatted to Monica. "I also told Min and Grace about your mountain. Min asked me if I have a special spot to go when I want to be alone or think and I told her about it."

Monica nodded. She was truly interested in her 'little one's day.

Gloria was just relieved her supervisor wasn't upset with her for telling the girls about it.

As Gloria and her family sat down to dinner twenty minutes later, she said the blessing before grinning around at her family. She loved them so much and would do anything for them.

Little did Gloria know the terrible night Grace was having…

Meanwhile over at the Smith household, things were not going as well.

Grace was playing in her room that evening when she heard shouting coming from downstairs. She whimpered as she heard a glass break and her father shout, "You never do anything right Catherine!"

"I'm sorry Richard. I didn't know you didn't want chicken for dinner." She replied softly.

Richard grunted as he started sifting through the papers on the counter. He came across a note from Grace's teacher. It was addressed to Grace's parents Catherine and Richard, so Richard opened it.

Miss Melody had written in concern about some bruising on the young girl as well as the fact that Grace was very withdrawn.

After reading the letter, Richard growled and crumbled up the paper before turning to Catherine.

"What the hell are you telling Grace's teacher?" Richard growled at his wife.

Catherine turned and swallowed. She should have hid that note from Richard because she knew it was going to cause problems.

"I didn't say anything. It was just what she noticed. I didn't say anything Richard." Catherine tried to explain.

Richard reached out and slapped Catherine across the face. He then turned to the stairs and yelled, "Grace, get down here!"

Grace whimpered as she slowly walked down the stairs. She knew her daddy was mad and she knew she was probably going to get hit. She walked into the kitchen a few moments later and looked up at Richard.

"Hi Daddy." She greeted him softly.

"Don't you hi daddy me! What the hell are you telling your teacher?" Richard exclaimed to his daughter.

"I didn't say anything." Grace whimpered. "I promise I didn't say anything." She hadn't even known that her teacher had sent a note home.

"Clearly, she knows something Grace! She sent a note home thinking I beat you! She wouldn't have gotten that idea unless you said something." Richard pointed out.

"Leave her alone Richard. She's scared of you, she wouldn't have said anything." Catherine tried to point out.

"You stay out of this!" He shouted, turning to Catherine.

Grace whimpered again as Richard grabbed her arm tightly.

"As for you, you need to keep your mouth shut and keep our business to yourself." He said firmly.

Grace nodded her head. She knew she was going to be wearing a long sleeve tomorrow because of how tightly her father was holding onto her arm. She was going

to have another bruise.

Richard roughly pushed her down to the ground where she proceeded to hit her back on the edge of the wall.

"You should have never been born Grace. You just bring problems to this house." Richard told his daughter as he turned back to his wife. "As for you." Richard started as he cracked his knuckles. "You need to learn how to keep your mouth shut. I know you're hanging out with some lady. You better not be telling her anything." He said firmly. "Because if I find out you are…" He threatened.

Catherine gulped and nodded her head. She was so afraid to stick up for herself.

Grace watched in horror as her father proceeded to slap her mother across the face and hold her arm tightly.

The little girl couldn't handle it anymore and got up from the floor. She quietly slipped out of the house so her father wouldn't notice.

Once outside, Grace walked down the street and wrapped her arms across her chest. She didn't know where to go. She just knew she couldn't be at home anymore with her father. He was so mean to her. He never hugged her and talked to her nicely. And after tonight he apparently didn't even care that she was alive. She started crying to herself. She couldn't believe that someone could hate someone so much. She remembered back to Gloria's interaction with Andrew. He was a nice man. He didn't hate her. He hugged her and comforted her when she was upset. He listened to her when she spoke. Why couldn't her Daddy be like that?

Gracie whimpered and tried to think of where she could go. That's when she remembered the mountain that Gloria had told her about. It was at a high place, so she didn't think she could reach it, but maybe she could go to the base of the mountain.

Gracie looked around and saw the direction the mountain was at. Luckily her family only lived a few blocks off from the base of the mountain so she began her trek to the mountain.

Meanwhile, back at the angel's home, Monica was in the kitchen washing dishes from dinner when she felt God speaking to her. "It's time."

The Irish angel nodded her head. She was about to beckon Gloria over to her when two things happened at once.

First, her cell phone rang. Second, Gloria came into the room and straight over to her mother. She was frowning, which caused Monica to gaze down at her daughter in concern.

"Gloria, what's wrong, sweetheart?" She asked. She put a hand on her 'little one's shoulder and pulled her close just as her phone rang for a third time.

"Monica, my tummy hurts!" Gloria cried. "It feels like there's a thousand butterflies in it!"

The Irish angel bit back a small laugh as she concentrated on helping her daughter feel better.

Just as she was about to check her for a fever, Tess appeared.

"I know what's going on." She said, making both of her angel babies look up at her.

"I think I do too." Monica said as she hoisted Gloria onto her hip.

The two elder angels exchanged a knowing glance before the sound of Monica's cell phone made her glance down.

With a nod at Tess, Monica carried Gloria out of the house and to the familiar red car.

By this time, her cell phone had rung for a sixth time and she also had some messages.

After getting Gloria buckled in her car seat, Monica picked up the phone. She gave Gloria her Tinkerbell doll and kissed the child's fore head to check her for a fever. She whispered she loved her before putting the phone to her ear.

"Hello Catherine." Monica said into the receiver of the phone.

"Monica! Oh my God, you have to help me!" She cried in alarm.

"Catherine, what is it?" The Irish angel asked in concern. "Whatever it is, I'll help you as best I can."

"I-I can't find Grace anywhere!" Catherine exclaimed into the phone. "Something must have scared her and made her run off. I don't know where she is!"

"Okay. We'll search around town and call you in twenty minutes. It's gonna be okay. Maybe Gloria will know where she is. Gloria and I will go look for her. You stay at the house in case Grace comes back." Monica explained.

"Thank you Monica." Catherine told her before hanging up the phone.

Once she got off the phone, Monica turned her attention to Gloria.

Before she could speak, her daughter beat her to it. She had her eyes closed and she was concentrating hard.

"Monica, I know where she is." She announced.

Monica smiled. She knew that God had told Gloria what she needed to know. She also knew her 'little one was slowly becoming her old self again.


	14. Chapter 14

DISCLAIMER: We DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 14

Twenty minutes later, Monica and Gloria found themselves at a very familiar place.

Getting out of the car, Gloria ran ahead of her supervisor. She was feeling more relaxed as she ran further into the familiar wooded area.

"Gloria! Gloria, wait!" Monica called after her case worker.

But for the first time, Gloria didn't listen to her. She was listening to someone else and her Heavenly Father had told her to keep going.

Sighing to herself, Monica ran to catch up with her daughter. She knew if Gloria hadn't listened to her, there was a good reason for it.

It was then that Gloria's voice rang out loud and clear.

"I found her! Monica! Monica! I found her! Quick!"

Monica rushed to where the child was standing. She gasped at the sight she found.

Grace was at the base of the mountain, curled against it. She was shivering and bruises covered her body. She was also in tears.

Kneeling down to the child's level, Monica put the back of her hand to Grace's forehead.

Frowning, the Irish angel turned to her charge.

"She's burning up." She told her. "We need to get her to a hospital and call Catherine right away. I need you to be a big girl and help me."

"Monica, I'm scared!" Gloria cried. "Is Grace going to die?"

Monica's heart broke at the sight of Gloria's trembling lower lip.

Pulling her close, she kissed her cheek before giving her a hug.

"Not if we help her." She assured her daughter. "It's okay to be afraid, but if you ask God to help you, He can take it away."

Gloria nodded. She fought back tears and tried to be strong for her friend.

Monica smiled with pride at her 'little one. She knew it was hard, but Gloria was doing a great job.

Turning her attention to Grace, the Irish angel concentrated on getting her to the hospital.

As Grace felt someone lift her up, she whimpered in protest.

"Shh, it's okay, Grace. You're safe, darlin'. We're gonna help you."

Grace merely whimpered again as the Irish angel carried her to her car.

Once there, Gloria buckled herself in and they were off.

On the way, Monica called Catherine to tell her what had happened.

"Thank God!" Catherine praised. "I'll be right there. Tell Gracie, tell her I…I love her."

"She knows, Catherine. " The Irish angel assured her. "She knows." With that, the call ended.

Upon arriving at the hospital, Monica explained to the desk clerk, Tony, what was going on.

Tony paged Dr. Susan Larkin and Dr. Anna Marcela immediately.

Once Grace was taken into the first available trauma room, Gloria found comfort and reassurance in the best place she knew-her supervisor's arms.

"You did very well, little one." Monica praised her case worker. "I'm very proud of you."

Gloria nodded as she let the tears fall. She was scared for Grace, but a part of her knew God would take care of her.

"The assignment's not over yet, babies." Tess reminded them as she appeared in front of the two angels.

"We still have to tell Grace God loves her." Gloria replied.

"That's right, little angel." Her superior confirmed. "But you're going to do that in a few minutes. Monica will help you, but when it comes time for the actual revelation, I don't think you'll need her help. All you need to do is let God lead the way. You'll know what to do."

Gloria nodded.

"Tess, I feel…strange." Gloria confided in her. "When we were looking for Grace, I felt like God was leading me to her."

"That's because He was." Tess affirmed. "He wanted you to find her first."

"He did?" Gloria asked.

"Uh-huh."

Gloria grinned despite the situation.

"I love working for God."

Tess laughed softly.

"So do I, little angel. So do I."

Just then, Catherine ran into the room. Her cheeks were tear stained with more tears to come. She ran straight over to Monica.

"Thank you so much!" She exclaimed the minute she saw the Irish angel. "You found my baby! Is she all right?"

Monica put up a hand to silence Catherine.

"The doctors are working on her right now." She explained. "But she should be fine."

Catherine sank down in a chair and buried her face in her hands.

Monica glanced at Tess for instructions.

The wise angel shook her head. It wasn't time yet.

Monica nodded. She resituated Gloria on her lap before turning her attention back to Catherine.

A few hours later, Catherine stepped into the hospital room where her daughter lay sleeping. She couldn't believe this had happened. And what made matters worse, it was all her fault. At least that's what she thought.

As Catherine gazed down at her baby girl battered and beaten, she couldn't hold it back any longer. The tears came in rivers down her cheeks. She loved this little girl so much and yet she had hurt her so badly.

"I'm so sorry, baby." She apologized tearfully. "Mommy loves you so much. I never meant for this to happen! Oh God, I'm sorry! Oh my God, if you're there, please help me! I can't do this alone. Please, help us! Oh God, I'm so sorry!" With that, Catherine broke down completely.

"He knows that." A familiar voice assured her. "He knows."

Catherine gazed up to find Monica standing there. As her gaze landed on her new friend, she gasped. The Irish woman wasn't as Catherine remembered. She was now glowing, a golden light shining around her. She was also wearing a flowing white gown.

Seeing the look of fear that flashed across her face, Monica hastened to assure her.

"Don't be afraid, Catherine. I'm not going to hurt you and neither will God. God sent me here to help you. I'm an angel."

Catherine shook her head in disbelief.

"An angel? Why would God send me an angel? I don't deserve one. I've hurt my baby and let someone hurt us. Why isn't God punishing me right now? Why!"

"God knows it wasn't your fault." Monica assured her. The soft light of God's love was still around her. "God knows Richard Smith for who he really is. He knew long before you did. God loves you and your wee girl so much. He wants to help you, but only you can make the decision to let Him. He never wanted this for you or Grace. Never. But it didn't' start with Richard, did it?" She asked softly.

Catherine was crying openly now as she gazed at Monica's glowing form.

Shaking her head, Catherine allowed the angel to reach out and rest a hand on her trembling shoulder.

"Someone else hurt you before Richard came into your life. They made you think you deserved to be hit and treated unkindly. So when Richard started hitting you, you accepted it because you knew no different. And then when Grace came along, you tried your best to protect her. Something your own mother didn't do for you. She didn't protect you or love you as she should have. Instead she hurt you both emotionally and physically, didn't she?"

Catherine nodded.

"I…I never wanted to hurt Gracie like that."

"God knows that." She assured her. "And you've never laid a hand on her in a harmful way."

"No." Catherine agreed bitterly. "I just let someone else do it for the past six years! What kind of mother am I?"

"A good one." She told her. "You put your daughter's safety before your own. Just as God puts the needs of His children before His own. Children are the most precious gift God blesses us with. They are meant to be loved and cherished as God loves and cherishes every one of His children. He knew you needed help. That's why He sent me to help you."

"I want it to stop!" Catherine cried desperately.

Monica had pulled her in for a hug at this point.

Once the Irish angel had wrapped her arms around her, Catherine found herself crying harder than she had ever cried in a long time.

"Shh, it's okay now." Monica assured her. "Just let it out. You're safe. If you want it to stop, you need to take the steps to make it happen. God will help you, but you need to ask Him."

"I'm scared!" Catherine confessed.

"I know you are. And so does God. But He promises that if you ask Him, He'll help you take the first step. And when it gets to be too hard to take another, He'll carry you and your daughter through the rest of the way."

Catherine nodded.

After a few minutes, she spoke again. Her concern wasn't for herself, but for her daughter.

"What about Gracie?"

Monica smiled.

"Grace is going to be fine. God sent her angels too."

Catherine nodded as it dawned upon her.

"Gloria's an…"

Monica nodded warmly.

After the Irish angel had delivered the rest of her message from the Father, she left to help Gloria with her own revelation. She knew her 'little one would know what to do when the time came, but Monica needed to be there in case Gloria needed her.

Stepping out of the room and into the hallway, she spotted Gloria and Tess sitting in the waiting area.

Smiling gently down at her 'little one, Monica approached them and held out her hand.

"Gloria, it's time, sweetheart." She told her kindly.

Gloria glanced back at Tess for reassurance. It wasn't that she didn't trust Monica, far from it. IT was just her superior had been the one to explain what was going to happen next.

"Little angel, you'll be fine. I promise. Monica will be there the whole time."

Gloria nodded uncertainly.

After Tess gave her a hug, she stood up and prepared to leave.

"Where are you goin', Tess?" Monica inquired as she picked Gloria up.

Tess just winked at her 'angel girl before leaving them alone.

Shaking her head, Monica gave Gloria a hug and ruffled her hair comfortingly before setting her down.

"You can do this, little one. I know you can. I love you." With that, the Irish angel lead her charge to Grace's hospital room. She knew it was empty now except for the little girl within.

When they arrived, Gloria squeezed Monica's hand for comfort. She was starting to remember another time she had revealed herself to someone in the hospital and it wasn't a pleasant experience.

Monica could sense her charge's fear and knew she was probably remembering Madeline.

"It's okay, sweetheart." She assured her. "This will be different than Madeline's. You'll see."

Nodding, Gloria took a deep breath before opening the door to her friend's room.

When Monica didn't step in behind her, the little girl glanced back at her supervisor.

She threw her a questioning look and the Irish angel shook her head.

"You can do this." She encouraged. "I know you can. I'm right here. But more importantly, God is with you. He won't leave you and He'll help you reveal the truth of His love to Grace."


	15. Chapter 15

DISCLAIMER: We DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 15

Taking a deep breath, Gloria turned around and made her way into the room.

Once inside, she prayed quietly. She needed her Heavenly Father's help more than ever now.

"Mama?" Came a tiny voice from the hospital bed.

"No." Gloria replied softly. "It's me, Gloria. Your Mama will be back soon."

"Gloria?" Grace asked. She glanced to where Gloria's voice was coming from to see her friend standing beside her bed.

The little angel nodded. She gave her a small smile before continuing to speak. She could feel the Father telling her it was almost time.

"I'm scared!" Grace confided in her friend. "I don't wanna go home! My Daddy scares me!"

"I know." Gloria replied. "But God wants you to know you don't have to be scared anymore."

"I don't?" Grace asked. Her voice was full of uncertainty.

Gloria shook her head.

"No. You wanna know why?"

Grace nodded.

Gloria smiled gently at her friend. She could feel the light of God's love starting to shine around her. The feeling was familiar and full of peace and warmth.

"God loves you." Gloria replied. "He loves you so much. He doesn't want you to be scared. He'll help you not to be scared, but you need to let Him."

Grace gasped as she stared at Gloria. She had never seen someone look like that before.

Gloria's clothes had even changed. She was now wearing a flowing white gown.

"Gloria…wha-what's going on?" She asked shakily.

Gloria smiled reassuringly.

"Don't be afraid of me, either. I'm an angel. God sent me to help you. I won't hurt you."

Grace nodded. Despite this, she found herself whispering, "Everyone else has."

"We know, sweetheart." Came a familiar Irish lilt from just behind Gloria. "God knows too. Like Gloria said, He loves you so much and He wants to help you. He wants to help you and your Mommy. But you have to let Him."

"Ma-Monica?" Grace asked. "Ya-you're an angel too?"

Monica smiled.

"Aye, yes. I am. God sent us here to help you."

"How can God help me?" She asked. She was starting to calm down.

"You need to trust Him." Gloria replied. She put a hand on Grace's shoulder to comfort her. She was still glowing softly.

Grace nodded.

"Ba-but It's hard." She replied.

"That's when God sends His angels to help you." Monica told her. "He sent us to help your Mommy too."

"He did?" She asked as Gloria gave her a hug.

"Yes." Monica replied. "Will you let Him help you?"

Grace hesitated for a few minutes.

"Will my Daddy still hurt me?"

"No." Monica replied confidently. "If your Mommy trusts God to help you, your Daddy will never hurt you again."

Grace nodded.

"Okay." She said shakily. "I'll try."

Monica smiled.

"Good."

"What do I do first?" She inquired softly.

Gloria gazed at Monica before turning her attention back to Grace.

"You pray." She told her.

"Will you pray with me?"

"Sure." With that, the girls started to pray. Gloria said most of the words, but Grace chimed in from time to time.

After the prayer was over, Monica told Gloria it was time to go. She let her little one give Grace a hug before leading her out of the room.

The Irish angel knew her little one was going to miss both Min and Grace. But she had it on high authority that Gloria would be seeing Min again very soon. She didn't know how it would happen. All she knew was that the Father had set another plan into motion.

As for Grace, Monica knew that as long as Catherine let God help her take the first steps to freedom, she and her daughter would have a bright future ahead of them. All they had to do was have faith and let the Father handle the rest.

When they got back outside, Gloria frowned when she realized Tess wasn't there. She wanted to tell her what had happened with Grace.

Monica assured a slightly disappointed Gloria that Tess would be back soon.

"Where did she go?" The little girl asked, never one to be short on questions.

Monica smiled knowingly as she wrapped a loving arm around her little one and pulled her close.

"She's gone to fulfill her part of the assignment."

Gloria nodded, satisfied with this answer.

As they waited for Tess to return, Monica shook her head knowingly. She had a feeling that if Richard Smith knew what was good for him, he'd listen to what her former supervisor had to say.

Knowing Tess, Monica had a feeling Richard would listen-whether he wanted to or not.

The reason was, when Tess talked, people or angels listened without complaint or protest. And that was one of the many things Monica loved about her supervisor the most…

Meanwhile, Tess entered the police station with a confident stride. She knew she had her work cut out for her, but she was determined to get through to this man. She prayed for patience as she made her way to the room where they were holding Richard Smith.

He had been arrested a few hours before for domestic abuse and child endangerment.

Richard Smith looked up at the sound of someone addressing him. He hadn't seen anyone walk in or heard the door open. So he was pretty shocked and surprised to see the slightly heavyset African American woman standing before him, hands firmly planted on her hips.

"You're that social worker person." Was all he managed to say before Tess started to speak.

"Yes and no." She began.

"Don't you people have anything better to do than tear apart families and get into their business?"

At the look on Tess's face, Richard knew he had gone too far.

"I believe you did that one on your own." Tess observed. "Now, you didn't listen to me before, but why don't we try this again." With that ,she started glowing, the soft light of God's love shining around her.

"What the…" Richard started, but the look in Tess's eyes made him stop before he ended the thought.

"That's what I thought. Now, I have a few things to say to you and you will listen. First of all, I'm an angel. Secondly, God loves you. And third, you have some changing to do. But in order to do that, you need to let God help you. He's already started by sending you an angel to tell you the truth of His love. But along with that, there are some other truths you need to know as well. The first one is this, I didn't tear your family apart. Your wife and daughter are scared to death of you. You made them feel that way by how you treated them."

"A woman is supposed to obey her husband. If she doesn't there are consequences."

"Oh really? Who says? While God loves you, He is VERY disappointed in how you've treated the two people you were supposed to love. He did NOT bring Catherine Williams and Grace into your life for you to abuse them. He brought them into your life so you could show them the love He has for all of His children. But you didn't do that, did you, baby?"

For the first time, Richard Smith didn't have an answer for her. He was cornered and he knew it.

"Wa-will I have a second chance?" He asked.

Tess sighed.

"Not with Catherine and Grace, but you will get a second chance to become the man that God waned you to be. He never wanted this for you, Richard. In fact, there was a time you valued God's will for you over anything else. But someone miss lead you, didn't they? They made you think that power was more important than trusting God to give you what you needed in His time. They made you believe that controlling others was a means of getting to the next level in life. But I have news for you, baby. There is NOTHING better than God's timing. God's timing is perfect. You knew that once, but somewhere along the line you forgot and you lost your way. You started searching for other means to get it."

"How do I find my way back?" Richard asked. He was trying hard to fight the tears of realization back, but one look into Tess's compassionate brown eyes and he found himself losing the battle.

"You ask God to show you the right path. And that's when He sends you a few angels to help you back to Him. He will always guide His children home again, but only if they ask Him. When you don't know where else to turn, turn to God. His love will lead you back home again, baby. But you need to ask Him and be sincere about it. God's always ready to give you what you need. But He can't do that if you keep going in the opposite direction."

Richard nodded. He was about to ask Tess something else, when he gazed up to find that she was gone.

As he sat there, he could feel Tess's words of truth sinking in. As they did, he had a feeling he had a lot of thinking to do. Apart from that, he also had some decisions to make. And by the grace of God, he was going to try and make the right ones this time. Even though he was a little confused as to how his life had gotten this bad, Richard was determined to take the second chance God was offering him and try to become the man God wanted him to be…

"Tess! Tess! I did it! I did it! I told Grace God loved her!" Gloria announced to her superior the moment she saw her walk into the room.

She practically attacked the elder angel, wrapping her arms around her waist.

"I know. " Tess told her. "I was watching. You did a wonderful job, little angel. The Father is very proud of you too." With that, she scooped Gloria up and hugged her close.

She was really going to miss Gloria being this small. But she knew Gloria would be happy to be her normal self again.

After holding Gloria for a few minutes, Tess put the little angel down and took her hand. It was time to leave. The assignment was nearly over. They just had one more thing to do. But that wouldn't happen for another few days.

"SO did you give Richard some truths for thought?" She winked and Tess nodded.

"I think so. It took a while, but I think I finally got him thinking the right way."

"I had no doubt." Monica said, giving Tess a knowing smile.

Tess grinned back before her gaze landed on Gloria.

"I'm gonna miss Gloria being this small." Monica replied as they drove off a half an hour later. She smiled at her little one from the front seat.

Gloria had fallen asleep in her car seat while reading "Karen's Cartwheel."

"I know you will, angel girl." Tess comforted. "But our little Gloria will be happy to be herself again. I'm gonna miss her being this size too. IT was fun most of the time."

Monica grinned.

"I think so too." She said.

When they returned to the house, Monica woke Gloria up and made her a snack.

While Gloria ate, she watched Monica do the dishes. She suddenly got an idea. She finished eating her snack before asking Monica about it.

Once her vanilla pudding cup and apple slices with milk were gone, she brought her plate over to the sink. She set it down before approaching her supervisor.

"Monica?"

"Aye, little one?" The Irish angel smiled down at her daughter. She loved this little girl more than anything. She was really going to miss having Gloria this size most of all. She had really enjoyed taking care of her while she was in this new Human form for the most part.

"May I help you ?" She asked sweetly. She gave Monica a hopeful look and gave her a famous smile.

"How can I say no when you asked so nicely." Monica replied. "You can definitely help. Come on." With that, Monica showed Gloria how to put the soap in the tub where the dishes were washed before they went into the dishwasher.

Before both angels knew it, it looked like a soap bubble had exploded in the kitchen!

Neither one minded much though. They were having too much fun.

It wasn't until a wise voice addressed them from behind, did they stop what they were doing.

"And just what do you think you two angel babies are doing?" Tess asked expectantly.

Gloria gasped before turning around to face her superior. She gave her a hopeful look before dashing behind Monica for protection.

"Monica can't protect you this time." Tess said. With that, she reached her arms out and caught Gloria just as the little girl ran across the room.

Picking her up, the elder angel started tickling her, making Gloria squeal with laughter.

"That's what you get for having a bubble party and not inviting me!" Tess told her, laughing herself.

Monica giggled as well. Tess was something else sometimes.

Once the tickle war was over, the superior angel set the youngest down before addressing her angel girl.

"I see you two are having fun in here without me."

Monica tried to hide her smile, but she couldn't hide it for long.

"Yes. I'm just tryin' to take advantage of the next twenty-four hours."

Tess nodded.

"I know what you mean, Ms. Wings. I'm gonna miss her being this small too. But I know you're going to miss it more than I will. Gloria's like your baby."

Monica nodded. She tried her best to fight back tears, but she wasn't fast enough for Tess.

The elder angel held out her arms.

"Come here, baby."

Monica did so. She let Tess hold her as the tears flowed freely from her brown eyes.

Tess held her 'angel girl until she calmed down. She didn't mind comforting her. She would do the same for Gloria as well.

Later that night, Tess read Gloria a story and sung to her before tucking her in. She made sure she was okay before leaving to check on Monica. She also wanted to get some music read before the next assignment.

Smiling to herself, Tess kissed Gloria's cheek before ruffling her hair.

"I love you, little angel. You'll always be my 'little angel, no matter what Human form you're in. Don't ever forget that. Sweet dreams, baby."

"Love you too, Tess." Gloria replied sleepily. She was exhausted. She had her Tinkerbell doll clutched firmly in her arms as her eyes closed.

"Aw, I love you too, baby. I love you too." With that, Tess left the room. She made sure Gloria's night-light was on as well as the door open a crack.

"Is she asleep?" Monica asked when Tess met her in the dining room.

Tess nodded.

"Yup. I put her Disney CD on for her low and she's out. I read her a story and had cuddle time with her and told her I loved her."

Monica grinned. She was glad Tess had that time with their little Gloria.

"I'm glad. I love her so much, Tess."

"I know you do. I love her too. I think this assignment was partly to show Gloria that once and for all."

Monica nodded in agreement.

"I think you're right."

A few hours later, Monica went to check on her 'little one. When she opened the door, she found Gloria half awake. She was laying down, but her brown eyes were open a little.

"Monica?" Gloria asked softly.

"Aye. It's me, sweetheart. It's okay. Go back to sleep, darlin'. It's late." With that, Monica sat on the edge of her daughter's bed and tried to get her to settle down.

Gloria shook her head. She sat up and held her arms out to her supervisor.

'Cudda, please?"

Monica couldn't help it. She grinned despite the hour of night and obliged. She could tell Gloria wasn't fully awake due to her speech.

"Aw, come here, sweetheart." With that, Monica pulled Gloria close and secured her in her lap.

Putting a hand through her daughter's reddish brown hair, she kissed the top of her head.

"Love you, Monica." Gloria replied as her eyes closed once again that night. She rested her head against Monica's right shoulder while sighing contently.

"Aw, I love you too, little one. I love you very much. And I'm so proud of you." With that, the Irish angel prepared herself for a long night…


	16. Chapter 16

DISCLAIMER: We DO NOT own any of the characters you recognize. They belong to Martha Williamson. I do however own Min and her family, as well as Miss Melody and the various students in her class. My friend, Megan owns Grace and her family. If anyone would like to use any of these OC's, please ask our permission first.  
Thanks!  
God loves you  
Enjoy!

"The Faith of a Child"

Chapter 16

The next morning, Gloria awoke feeling strange. She tried to stretch, but found that she couldn't.

Opening her brown eyes slightly, she realized she was still in Monica's arms.

Smiling to herself, she allowed herself a few minutes of relaxation before getting up for the day. She enjoyed listening to her supervisor's heartbeat whenever Monica held her. It always made her feel safe and protected.

After a few minutes of calm silence, Gloria felt the need to be alone with God. She needed to reflect on a few things and she knew the perfect place to do so.

Disentangling herself from Monica's loving embrace, Gloria managed to stand without waking the Irish angel.

As Gloria did so, she noticed something else had changed as well. She was back to her normal self!

Letting out a quiet cheer, she started getting ready. She made a mental note to give Kassie her Tinkerbell doll and various other toys she had acquired during this assignment. She knew her daughter would love and appreciate them.

Whatever Kassie wasn't interested in keeping, Gloria would give to a group home or children's hospital. She knew the toys would go to good use there.

As the youngest angel got dressed, Snickers came into the room. She meowed and rubbed up against Gloria's leg. She too was happy to have her mistress and best friend back to normal.

Gloria picked the kitten up and hugged her close.

"Good morning to you too, sweetheart. Why don't you keep Monica company until I get back." With that, she gently placed the kitten in her supervisor's lap before leaving the room.

Entering the kitchen, she found Tess making pancakes. She also found someone else there too.

Kassie grinned from ear to ear upon seeing her mother. She had missed her while she had been away.

"Mom!"

"Hey there Kass! Aw, I missed you so much!" Gloria told her sincerely as she caught her daughter and swung her around. "Did you have fun at Kiana's?"

"Yup!"

Tess grinned from ear to ear at the interaction between Gloria and her daughter. She knew the two had missed one another and it was good to see them together again.

It was also nice to see Gloria back to her normal self.

"So how does it feel to be back?" Tess asked. She didn't want to go into too much detail with Kassie there.

Gloria grinned in her superior's direction as she set her daughter down.

The seven-year-old gave her mother one more hug before returning to her breakfast.

"Good." Gloria replied truthfully. "Tess, is it okay if I go for a walk? I need to sort some things out. I won't be long."

"Sure thing, baby. Be careful though."

"I will." Gloria promised.

"Oh and one more thing before you leave." Tess said. With that, she pulled her 'little angel close while wrapping her in a hug. "I love you, little angel."

"I love you too." Gloria replied.

Once eldest and youngest angel had pulled away, Gloria went to give Kassie a hug and kiss good-bye.

"You'll be back, right?" Kassie asked anxiously.

"Of course I will." Gloria promised the little girl. "I love you, sweetheart. Be good for Grandma Tess, all right. Then when I get back, we'll spend some time together and you can tell me all about your trip."

Kassie grinned at this as she gave her mother one last hug and kiss.

"Okay!"

Laughing softly to herself, Gloria smiled back at her daughter before leaving the house for her destination…

Meanwhile, Monica awoke to find Gloria not there. Instead of her arms feeling heavy, they felt slightly light. She glanced down to see not Gloria there, but Snickers instead.

"Hi, sweetheart. Do you know where Gloria is?" She asked. She scratched the kitten behind her ears as she asked this.

Purring, Snickers rubbed against the Irish angel's arm, making her giggle.

"Better you than me." A wise voice stated from just inside the doorway.

Monica glanced up to see Tess standing there. SHE gave her former supervisor a cheeky grin.

The grin faded almost immediately as she remembered Gloria was missing.

"Do you know where Gloria is?" The Irish angel inquired.

Tess shook her head.

"Can't say I do."

Monica frowned.

"She didn't' run away again, did she?"

Tess shook her head.

"No. I promise." She winked before leaving the room to make breakfast. This was their last day there. They would be moving on later this afternoon.

Monica sighed.

It was then that she felt a familiar presence near her. She closed her eyes before letting the Father's answer fill her heart.

"Thank you, Father. Thank you." Monica praised. She now knew where Gloria was. She also knew she was safe, which was a relief.

Setting Snickers down upon the ground, the Irish angel gave the cat one final pet before leaving the room and the house.

She said good morning to Kassie who was watching "Tinkerbell" in the living room and promised Tess she would be back before breakfast got cold and left.

Kassie returned the greeting and gave her aunt a hug and kiss. She was holding Gloria's Tinkerbell doll in her arms and Monica could tell Gloria wouldn't have to look far for a new owner for her.

As Monica drove along the familiar streets of the city, she thanked God once again for keeping Gloria safe.

The Irish angel knew where her charge was and she needed to talk to her. She didn't know why exactly. All the Irish angel knew was she had to spend this time with her case worker alone. There were some things she had to discuss with her about the final part of their assignment.

Meanwhile, Gloria smiled as she gazed across the canyon surrounding the mountain. She didn't know why, but she had to come here. She had to get out and think about everything that had happened in the last few weeks.

As far as Gloria was concerned, she couldn't think of a better place than her supervisor's mountain.

"I thought I'd find you here." A familiar Irish lilt stated from just beside the youngest angel on her left.

Gloria jumped a mile before realizing who it was.

Hand over her heart, she whirled around and gave the Irish angel a look.

"Monica, you scared me!" She exclaimed in her normal adult voice.

"I'm sorry, little one." She then added, "although maybe I should rephrase that. You're not so little anymore."

Monica smiled at her case worker, receiving a shy smile in return.

"How does it feel to be your old self again?" The Irish angel inquired.

"Good and strange." Her case worker replied honestly. "There were times I liked being small and other times when I just wanted to be myself again."

Monica nodded as she put a hand on Gloria's shoulder.

"That's understandable."

Silence fell between them before Gloria broke it with a question.

The look she gave Monica spoke volumes. It was full of worry and uncertainty.

"Ya-you're not gonna stop calling me 'little one, are you? I like that special name from you."

Monica laughed softly and shook her head. She pulled Gloria in for a hug and wrapped an arm around her.

"Never, little one. Never. You will always be my 'little one. You don't have to worry about that. I love you so much, Gloria."

"I love you too." Gloria replied. She gazed anxiously at Monica before speaking again. "I'm sorry for coming here without your permission."

The youngest angel could feel herself blushing with embarrassment. She turned away so her supervisor wouldn't see. But Monica was faster.

"Gloria, I want you to look at me." Monica instructed softly.

Gloria did so without a second thought.

Once the Irish angel was sure she had her 'little one's attention, she continued speaking.

"You don't have to apologize for comin' here." She assured her. "And you don't need my permission to do so. It's not just my mountain anymore. It's yours too. You're free to come here whenever you like. I'm happy to share this place with you."

"You are?" Gloria asked in surprise.

Monica laughed softly and patted her case worker's shoulder.

"Of course I am." She affirmed.

"You were a good Mom to me." Gloria said after a minute or two had passed.

"You really think so?"

Gloria nodded.

"Are you kidding? You did a fantastic job. I don't remember much, but from what I do remember, you were there for me when I needed you. Just like you are now." She then added, "I've always viewed you as my mother."

"I know." The Irish angel replied. "And like I said before, I don't mind. I think of you as my own. I love you so much, little one. That's somethin' that will never change." She assured her.

Gloria sighed with relief. She then got an anxious look on her face before saying what else was on her mind.

"I…I'm sorry." She replied. Her voice was shaking and Monica could sense tears weren't far behind.

"For what?" Monica asked. She thought she knew, but she wasn't sure.

"I'm sorry I said I…I said I hated you. I-I didn't mean it. I don't even know where it came from. I just felt so…abandoned and…I…I'm so sorry!" With that, the flood gates opened wide.

"Gloria…come here."

Pulling Gloria close, Monica wrapped her in a hug full of nothing but sincere love and compassion.

"Listen to me, little one. I need you to listen to me carefully."

Gloria's response was a hiccup, followed by a sob.

"I know you didn't' mean what you said." Monica assured her. "You weren't yourself. You were frustrated and confused. I understand that. I forgive you. I forgave you already. I love you, little one."

Gloria just let the tears fall as Monica continued to comfort her. She didn't know where they had come from, but she couldn't stop them.

Sensing Gloria just needed to cry this out, the Irish angel continued to soothe her and encouraged her to cry it out. She had a feeling Gloria was just feeling confused and emotionally drained from the last few weeks. She was herself again, but she also needed to sort out some things from their last assignment.

Once Gloria had calmed, Monica made sure she was okay before giving her the good news.

"Our assignment's not quite over yet." She told her.

"It's not?" Gloria asked in surprise. She wiped the last few tears away before taking a deep breath in an effort to calm down the rest of the way.

"Nope. Come on. There's one last thing we need to do." With that, Monica led Gloria to the red Cadillac.

Once inside, Monica drove to their destination. She parked the car in the parking lot and got out.

When Gloria realized where they were, her grin grew a mile wide.

"Are we here to add another pet to our family?"

Monica frowned.

"Not quite, little one. But we are here to add a pet to someone else's family."  
Gloria nodded. She had a feeling she knew who her supervisor was talking about.

Getting inside, Monica took Gloria to the kitten section of the store.

It took the youngest angel fifteen minutes, but she was finally able to pick out the perfect kitten for Grace.

The kitten was a tabby, with a pink nose and green eyes. It resembled Snickers slightly, but it also had its own markings as well.

"What do you think?" Gloria asked her supervisor and best friend.

Monica smiled when she saw the kitten Gloria had chosen.

"I think she's lovely." She said truthfully. "Now let's get her some food and a few toys. Then it's off to make a special delivery."

Gloria was rearing to go by the time they left the pet store.

Pulling up to Grace's house, Gloria was surprised to find it in better shape than the last time she had visited.

There were flowers along the walkway as well as a swing set in the backyard.

Standing on the doorstep, Gloria grinned as she rang the doorbell.

Fortunately, Catherine answered the door.

"Hi!" Gloria greeted in her standard way. "Catherine right?"

The young woman nodded.

"Yes. May I help you?"

"I'm a friend of Monica's. She asked me to deliver this to you. It's for Grace."

Catherine stared at the box Gloria held in her hands.

"I…I don't know what to say." She said as she took the object from the youngest angel. "Gracie will love her! She's wanted a kitten for a long time now. Thank you so much. Tell Monica we said hi and thank you for everything."

"I will." Gloria assured her. She was about to leave, when Catherine stopped her.

"And if you see Gloria, tell her Grace said hi and she loves her."

"I have a feeling she already knows." Gloria told her. She winked before turning to leave. "In fact, I can guarantee it." With that, she was gone.

Shaking her head, Catherine smiled up at the sky before going back inside to show Grace her surprise. She knew her daughter would love her.

"Aw, she's so cute!" Gloria observed a few weeks later. She, along with Monica, Tess and Andrew were checking on Catherine and her daughter.

They were adjusting nicely to a life without fear. There were adjustments on both mother and daughter's parts, but they were definitely getting there.

"She is that, little angel." Tess agreed. She was watching Grace playing with her new kitten.

"Come here, Gloria. I have a treat for you." Grace called gently.

Gloria blushed while her angelic co workers tried their best not to laugh aloud.

"She named the cat after me?" She asked in disbelief. "I thought she would have named it Tinkerbell or Monica."

Tess shook her head.

"It appears you had the most influence on her. You changed her life for the better, little angel. And that's Grace's way of saying thank you."

Gloria nodded.

As the angels continued to watch Grace and her mother, Gloria knew it was soon time to leave.

She tore her eyes away from the cute sight and gazed back at the car.

Kassie was sitting in the backseat happily reading Gloria's "Tinkerbell" novelization.

Gloria had promised her daughter they would buy her her own copy at the next Borders or Barnes and Noble they stopped at.

Kassie liked this idea. She knew her mother would keep her promise. But until that time came, she was content to borrow Gloria's copy.

The youngest angel didn't mind lending it to her. She knew her little girl would take good care of it.

Kassie was like Gloria in that way. This meant she handled books with respect and care.

Gloria turned her attention to her superior just then. A hopeful look was in her eyes as she addressed her.

"Tess, you know what would make a perfect ending to this assignment? Or maybe I should say purrfect."

Monica couldn't help it. She burst out laughing. Gloria had made a good pun.

"What?" The elder angel asked. She hadn't even realized the humorous comment her 'little angel had made.

"If you let me drive your car back. Please? Please with sugar and a pineapple and sprinkles on top."

Monica put her two cents in just then.

"Well, I think it's safe to say our little Gloria's back to her old self."

"I can tell." Tess said, a hint of annoyance in her voice. "And something tells me I better say yes before she goes through every chocolate combination known to man."

This got Andrew to chuckle as well.

"You really mean it?" Gloria asked. "You'll really let me drive back?"

Tess nodded reluctantly.

Gloria threw her arms around Tess before holding her hand out for the keys.

Tess shook her head.

Gloria gave her a confused look.

"I don't have them, baby." She told her. "You'll have to ask someone else for them."

Gloria nodded. She looked confused for a minute before her eyes lit up in realization.

Turning her attention to her supervisor, she held her hand out and gave her a hopeful look.

Before Monica could say yes or no, Gloria tried to keep a straight face as she asked, "Mother, may I?"

Tess let a chuckle escape her lips and Monica tried to hide a smile.

After a minute, she handed Gloria what she wanted.

As Gloria took the keys from her supervisor, she was about to make a bee line for the car, when Monica raised her eyebrows.

Gloria realized what she was getting at a minute or so later.

"Thanks." With that, she was off.

As Gloria put the car in gear and drove away from their previous residence, they passed by a local playground.

Smiling at the children playing in the sandbox and on the swings, Gloria lifted her eyes to the sky just as a dove flew over the car.

As Gloria glanced back at her own daughter, her smile grew.

Monica was right.

Children were a gift. In fact, they were the most precious gift God blessed Humans with. And now Catherine knew that as well.

THE END


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